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CRAWFORD
UNIVERSITY OP
CALIFORNIA
SAN DIEGO
UNIVERSITY LIBRARY
UNIVERSITY OF CALIFORNIA
SAN DIEGO
Donated in memory of
John W. Snvder
by
His Son and Daughter
F
686
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KANSAS IN THE SIXTIES
KANSAS IN THE
SIXTIES
BY
SAMUEL J. CRAWFORD
WAR GOVERNOR OF KANSAS
WITH PORTRAITS
CHICAGO
A. C. McCLURG & CO.
1911
Copyright
A. C. McCLURG & CO.
1911
Published, August, 1911
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FLORENCE CRAWFORD CAPPER
AND
GEORGE MARSHALL CRAWFORD
THIS VOLUME IS
REGARDFULLY INSCRIBED
PREFACE
THE author of these memoirs was born in Lawrence
County, Indiana, April 10, 1835 ; was reared on a
farm, and educated in the public schools, the Bedford
graded school, and the Law School of the Cincinnati
College.
His parents, William and Jane Morrow Crawford,
were born in Orange County, North Carolina, in 1788
and 1792, respectively; were reared on plantations,
educated in private schools, married in 1810, and
emigrated to the Territory of Indiana in 1815. His
grandfather, James Crawford, was born in Virginia,
emigrated to North Carolina, married Miss Margaret
Fraser, served in the Revolutionary War, and lived to
a ripe old age.
The ancestral line of the Crawford family is trace-
able to a remote period in Scotland — beyond which it
may not be prudent to go, since members of the clan,
by reason of their clannishness, lost their heads in the
Tower of London.
The subject-matter of this volume was drawn from
scenes in Kansas during the past half-century, and
events incident to the Civil War west of the Mississippi.
The period from the beginning of that war to the close
of the Indian wars, was thrilling in the extreme. Bat-
tles, bloody and desperate, followed each other in rapid
succession. The States of Kansas, Missouri, Arkan-
sas, Louisiana, and Texas, and the Indian Territory
were torn asunder and drenched in fraternal blood.
The commerce of the plains was destroyed by hostile
vii
PREFACE
tribes of Indians ; men, women, and children were killed
and scalped, and the frontier settlements laid in ashes.
Following these awful scenes, which I have endeav-
ored to sketch accurately, came peace, harmony, hap-
piness, and prosperity. The cannon were melted into
monuments; the muskets were put away as relics of
the past; swords were sheathed; and the bugle-call to
arms was no longer heard. Brave boys were they who
fell, and just as brave were they who remained to tell
the tale.
The author enjoys the distinction of being almost
the last of the " War Governors," there being to his
knowledge only one other, Governor Sprague, of Rhode
Island, now living.
S. J. C.
TOPEKA, KANSAS,
July, 1911.
CONTENTS
PART FIRST
CHAPTER I
PROM INDIANA TO KANSAS
PAGE
PRACTISED LAW IN GARNETT — THE FREE STATE CONVEN-
TION — THE WYANDOTTE STATE CONVENTION —
ELECTED TO FIRST STATE LEGISLATURE — THE
DROUGHT OF 1860 — BUFFALO HUNT — RACE FOR LIFE
— INDIAN VISITORS ....... 1
CHAPTER II
THE DAWN OF LIGHT
LINCOLN'S ELECTION — STATE GOVERNMENT — FORT SUM-
TER FIRED UPON AND PRESIDENT'S CALL FOR TROOPS . 15
CHAPTER III
OFF TO THE WAR
ORGANIZATION OF THE SECOND KANSAS INFANTRY — A TRIP
TO TOPEKA BEHIND A WILD TEAM — MUSTERED INTO
U. S. SERVICE, JUNE 22, 1861 — EXPEDITION TO AND
SKIRMISH AT FORSYTE — BATTLE OF DUG SPRINGS, AU-
GUST 2, 1861 — BATTLE OF WILSON'S CREEK, AUGUST
10, 1861 — BATTLE OF SHELBINA — REGIMENT RETURNS
TO FORT LEAVENWORTH AND is MUSTERED OUT, OCTO-
BER 31, 1861 21
iz
X CONTENTS
CHAPTER IV
THE SECOND KANSAS CAVALRY
TREACHERY OF U. S. OFFICERS IN TEXAS AND NEW MEXICO
— GENERAL SIBLEY'S RETREAT AND REMARKABLE RE-
PORT— EXPEDITION TO NEW MEXICO — PURSUIT OF
NAVAJO INDIANS — RETURN TO FORT LARNED — INDIAN
COUNCIL . 40
CHAPTER V
OPERATIONS IN MISSOURI AND ARKANSAS
BATTLE OF NEWTONIA, OCTOBER 4, 1862 — NIGHT ENGAGE-
MENT AT CROSS HOLLOWS, OCTOBER 18, 1862 — BATTLE
OF OLD FORT WAYNE, OCTOBER 22, 1862 — CAPTURE OF
BATTERY — ENGAGEMENT AT BOONSBORO AND COVE
CREEK, NOVEMBER 8, 1862 — SKIRMISH WITH BUSH-
WHACKERS — CAVALRY FIGHT AT CARTHAGE, NOVEMBER
20, 1862 53
CHAPTER VI
CAMPAIGN IN ARKANSAS
BATTLE OF CANE HELL — BATTLE OF THE BOSTON MOUN-
TAINS, DECEMBER 6, 1862 — BATTLE OF PRAIRIE GROVE,
DECEMBER 7, 1862 — ARMISTICE REQUESTED BY GEN-
ERAL HINDMAN — REAL SOLDIERS AND POLITICAL SOL-
DIERS , . 68
CHAPTER VII
RAID ON VAN BUREN
CAPTURE OF FOUR STEAMBOATS — PURSUIT OF REBELS IN
SOUTHWEST MISSOURI 87
CHAPTER VIII
EXPEDITION TO CHOCTAW NATION — CAPTURE OF FORT SMITH
BATTLE OF PERRYVILLE — BATTLE OF THE BACKBONE
MOUNTAINS, SEPTEMBER 1, 1863 — OCCUPYING FORT
SMITH — ADIEU TO THE SECOND KANSAS CAVALRY 95
CONTENTS XI
CHAPTER IX
THE EIGHTY-THIRD COLORED INFANTRY
CAMP LIFE AT FORT SMITH — ORDERS TO MOVE ON SHREVE-
PORT — BATTLE OF PRAIRIE D'ANE, APRIL 11-12, 1864
— DISGRACEFUL RETREAT OF GENERAL STEELE — SKIR-
MISH AT Moscow, APRIL 13, 1864 .... 104
CHAPTER X
BATTLE OF POISON SPRINGS — BATTLE OF JENKINS 's FERRY
BLACK FLAG — STEELE 's RETREAT, AND PURSUIT BY PRICE
AND KIRBY SMITH — BATTLE OF JENKINS'S FERRY,
APRIL 30, 1864 — DESPERATE FIGHTING OF THE EIGHTY-
THIRD — CAPTURE OF BATTERY — CAPTURE AND RE-
LEASE OF LIEUT. JOHN 0. LOCKHART, AND His REPORT —
CREDIT OF VICTORY DUE GEN. RICE — DISPUTE AMONG
REBEL GENERALS — FIGHT NEAR WEBBER'S FALLS,
JUNE 17, 1864 — -NOMINATED FOR GOVERNOR . . 116
CHAPTER XI
THE PRICE RAID THROUGH MISSOURI
RETREAT FROM JEFFERSON CITY — CONCENTRATION OF FED-
ERAL TROOPS AT KANSAS CITY — INJURIOUS COURSE OF
NEWSPAPER — BATTLE OF THE LITTLE BLUE, OCTOBER
21, 1864 — COUNCIL OF WAR, SATURDAY NIGHT, OCTO-
BER 22, 1864 — BATTLE OF WESTPORT, OCTOBER 23, 1864
— RETREAT TOWARD FORT SCOTT .... 139
CHAPTER XII
PRICE'S RETREAT AND ESCAPE
BATTLE OF MINE CREEK — CHARGE OF COLONELS PHILLIPS
AND BENTEEN — GEN. PRICE'S REPORT — BATTLE OF
THE LITTLE OSAGE, OCTOBER 25, 1864 — GEN. SHELBY'S
REPORT — PRICE DEMORALIZED — THE PURSUIT — His
ESCAPE — THE LAST DITCH . 157
CONTENTS
PART SECOND
CHAPTER XIII
ELECTION OF 1864
DEMOCRATIC NATIONAL CONVENTION — GEO. B. MCCLELLAN
NOMINATED FOR PRESIDENT 185
CHAPTER XIV
NATIONAL UNION CONVENTION OF 1864
PRESIDENT LINCOLN NOMINATED FOR RE-ELECTION — RE-
SULT OF THE ELECTION — THE CONFEDERACY DOOMED 194
CHAPTER XV
THE KANSAS STATE CONVENTIONS AND ELECTION OF 1864
STATE MILITIA AND POLITICAL GENERALS — RESULT OF THE
ELECTION — GOVERNOR 's MESSAGE — REORGANIZATION
OF THE STATE MILITIA — THE SECOND INAUGURATION .
OF PRESIDENT LINCOLN — ON TO CITY POINT — ASSAS-
SINATION OF PRESIDENT LINCOLN .... 200
CHAPTER XVI
HOMEWARD BOUND
INDIAN MARAUDERS — STATE OFFICERS — IMMIGRATION SO-
CIETY 222
CHAPTER XVH
1866
RAILROADS — INDIAN DEPREDATIONS — BATTLE FLAGS —
SUICIDE OF SENATOR LANE — RE-ELECTED GOVERNOR —
A DOUBLE WEDDING — STATE UNIVERSITY — STATE AG-
RICULTURAL COLLEGE . . 229
CONTENTS
CHAPTER XVIII
SECOND TERM
IMPORTANT LAWS — PROTECTION FOR THE FRONTIER —
HOSTILE INDIANS 245
CHAPTER XIX
COUNCIL AT MEDICINE LODGE
STATEMENT OF INDIAN DEPREDATIONS — INDIAN DIPLOM-
ACY — TREATIES — BAD OSAGES — THANKSGIVING
PROCLAMATION 263
CHAPTER XX
THE LEGISLATURE OF 1868 284
CHAPTER XXI
HOSTILE INDIANS
RAID ON COUNCIL GROVE — MASSACRE IN THE SOLOMON
AND REPUBLICAN VALLEYS — DESPATCH TO PRESIDENT
JOHNSON — BATTLE OF THE ARICKAREE . . . 287
CHAPTER XXII
INDIAN LAND FRAUDS
ATTEMPTED STEAL OF THE OSAGE LANDS — LETTER AND
MEMORIAL TO U. S. SENATE — DEFEAT OF LAND-GRAB-
BERS — CHEROKEE NEUTRAL LANDS — OPPOSED BY
STATE OFFICERS — FRAUDULENT SALE OF THE SAC AND
Fox LANDS 299
CHAPTER XXIII
FALL AND WINTER CAMPAIGN OF 1868-69
RESIGNATION AS GOVERNOR — OFF TO CAMP SUPPLY — Cus-
TER'S FIGHT WITH BAND OF CHEYENNES — CAPTIVE,
SLAIN — GEN. SHERIDAN'S ACCOUNT — SURRENDER OF
INDIAN CHIEFS — COL. MOORE'S REPORT OF THE PUR-
SUIT AND RELEASE OF CAPTIVES — THE MISTAKEN POL-
ICY OF THE GOVERNMENT 317
CHAPTER XXIV
REVIEW — PERSONAL . . . 337
XIV CONTENTS
PART THIRD
CHAPTER XXV
PEACE AND POLITICS
TRIUMPH OF BOODLERS IN ELECTING U. S. SENATOR — DE-
FEAT OF POMEROY AND ELECTION OF SENATOR INGALLS 345
CHAPTER XXVI
PERILS OF THE TARIFF POLICY 350
CHAPTER XXVII
STATE CLAIMS AND RAILROAD GRANTS — APPOINTED STATE
AGENT AT WASHINGTON 353
CHAPTER XXVIII
GENERAL PRACTICE
RECOVERY OF LANDS AND MONEYS FOR THE INDIANS — QUA-
PAW TREATIES AND GOVERNMENTAL MISMANAGEMENT 360
CHAPTER XXIX
BACK TO THE FARM — FARMING WITH DYNAMITE . . 368
CHAPTER XXX
CONCLUSION 377
APPENDIX
TERRITORY AND STATE OF KANSAS — THE LECOMPTON CON-
STITUTION — THE MINEOLA AND LEAVENWORTH CONSTI-
TUTION — THE "WYANDOTTE CONSTITUTION — ADMIS-
SION OF THE STATE OF KANSAS — POPULATION — MEM-
BERS OF KANSAS STATE GOVERNMENT, 1861 — ROSTER
OF REGIMENTAL OFFICERS, SECOND KANSAS INFANTRY,
MAY, 1861 — REGIMENTAL OFFICERS SECOND KANSAS
CAVALRY, MARCH, 1862 — ROSTER OF REGIMENTAL OFFI-
CONTENTS XV
CERS SECOND KANSAS COLORED INFANTRY (AFTERWARD
DESIGNATED THE EIGHTY-THIRD U. S. COLORED TROOPS)
— MEMBERS KANSAS STATE LEGISLATURE, 1865 — MEM-
BERS KANSAS STATE LEGISLATURE, 1866 — MEMBERS
KANSAS STATE GOVERNMENT, 1867 — ROSTER OF OFFI-
CERS EIGHTEENTH KANSAS CAVALRY, JULY 15, 1867 —
MEMBERS KANSAS STATE LEGISLATURE, 1868 — ADDRESS
OF HON. JOHN DAWSON ON THE LEGISLATURE OF 1868
(DELIVERED BEFORE THE KANSAS STATE HISTORICAL SO-
CIETY, DECEMBER 4, 1906) — CALL FOR STATE TROOPS,
SEPTEMBER 10, 1868 — ROSTER OF OFFICERS, FRONTIER
BATTALION, 1868 — CHEROKEE TREATY OF 1868 — CALL
FOR STATE TROOPS, OCTOBER 10, 1868 — THANKSGIVING
PROCLAMATION, NOVEMBER 4, 1868 — ROSTER OF THE
NINETEENTH KANSAS CAVALRY 381
INDEX , . 433
PORTRAITS
SAMUEL J. CRAWFORD Frontispiece
COLONEL SAMUEL J. CRAWFORD, AT 28 YEARS OF AGE . 136
GEN. AND MRS. SAMUEL J. CRAWFORD : GEN. CRAWFORD AT
32 YEARS OF AGE . 242
KANSAS IN THE SIXTIES
PART FIRST
CHAPTER I
FROM INDIANA TO KANSAS
PRACTISED LAW IN GARNETT THE FREE STATE CONVEN-
TION THE WYANDOTTE STATE CONVENTION ELECTED
TO FIRST STATE LEGISLATURE THE DROUGHT OF 1860
BUFFALO HUNT RACE FOR LIFE — INDIAN VISITORS.
HAVING received an early training for the battle
of life, I bade adieu to friends and the scenes of
childhood, and turned my face toward Kansas, a new
planet then rising in the West, and struggling to throw
off the barnacle of human slavery and assume its
proper position among the Free States of the Union.
Eight hours brought me to the Mississippi by rail
and across on the old ferry to the city of St. Louis.
From there, after viewing the sights, I took passage
on a Missouri River steamer and without incident of
note, in due time reached Kansas City, then a village of
cabins, but now a most beautiful city standing upon
many hills.
On the first day of March, 1859, in company with
a young man from the State of Illinois, I crossed the
line on foot into the Territory of Kansas, and after a
tiresome journey over broad prairies, with only an
i
2 KANSAS IN THE SIXTIES
occasional settler's cabin to be seen, we reached the
town of Garnett, seventy-five miles distant from Kan-
sas City, on the morning of March 4, 1859.
The town looked good to me ; the surrounding coun-
try, interspersed with winding streams and forests
green, stretching away as far as the eye could reach,
was enchanting ; and the citizens were plain, generous-
hearted people, who extended the right hand of fellow-
ship and welcomed us to stay and cast our lot with
them. I at once determined to make Garnett my future
home, and immediately engaged quarters at the new
hotel on Quality Hill, at three dollars per week.
PEACTISED LAW IN GARNETT
Soon thereafter I opened an office on the Public
Square and settled down to the practice of the law.
My travelling companion resolved to look farther;
but going alone, he soon became discouraged and re-
turned to the home of his youth, to discover later that
he had made a serious mistake. His intentions were
good, but like many other young men starting in life,
he lacked staying qualities.
Having determined on making Garnett my future
home, I sent back to Kansas City for my worldly goods,
including a law library, which, at that early date, was
above the average in Southern Kansas. In due time I
acquired a fairly good practice, which steadily in-
creased until the War of the Eebellion broke out.
Garnett was the county seat of Anderson County,
and when I located there it had a population of about
six hundred people. The county was but sparsely
settled, while a vast area of rich public land awaited
the coming of home-seekers.
The laws of Kansas Territory, at that time, were
substantially the same as the laws of Missouri, re-
enacted by a bogus Legislature composed largely of
citizens of Missouri and other Slave States, who had
come to Kansas and elected themselves members of the
FROM INDIANA TO KANSAS 3
Territorial Legislature. The Missouri statutes were
made applicable by striking out the words, " State of
Missouri, ' ' where they appeared in the statutes of that
State, and inserting in lieu thereof, the words, " Kan-
sas Territory." These bogus statutes protected slav-
ery in the Territory of Kansas, as the Missouri statutes
protected it in that State. Hence, it took time and be-
came necessary for young lawyers coming into the
Territory to study our Proslavery statutes and sepa-
rate, if they could, that portion which was applicable,
from the mass of confused and contradictory stuff that
was wholly inapplicable.
But the lawyers, young and old, did the best they
could under the circumstances. "When they were con-
sulted in regard to a law that was not applicable or
that ran counter to the prevailing opinion among the
Free-State men, — such, for instance, as the Slave Code,
copied from the Missouri statutes, or the Fugitive
Slave Law, as interpreted by the Supreme Court, —
they would sometimes advise their clients to let their
cases go by default, lest their adversary appeal to the
Higher Court at Osawatomie, whose decrees, if just,
were not always tempered with mercy.
The Summer of 1859 in Southern Kansas was de-
lightful, and the mile-posts were passed in rapid suc-
cession. Once each week, when the rivers could be
forded, Zack Squires would bring the mail in a hack
from Lawrence, and occasionally the lawyers would go
to the Land Office at Lecompton to attend to preemp-
tion and land cases; otherwise, the current of events
flowed smoothly.
THE FBEE-STATE CONVENTION
On May 18, 1859, the Free-State people of the Terri-
tory assembled at Osawatomie and organized the Re-
publican party in Kansas. At this convention, Horace
Greeley, of The New York Tribune, made a speechj in
the course of which he said :
4 KANSAS IN THE SIXTIES
" Freemen of Kansas! I would inspire you with no
unwarranted, no overweening confidence of success in the
great struggle directly before us. I have passed the age of
illusions, and no longer presume a party or cause destined to
triumph merely because I know it should. On the contrary,
when I consider how vast are the interests and influences
combined to defeat us, the three thousand millions of prop-
erty in human flesh and blood, the subserviency of commerce
to this great source of custom and profit, the prevalence of
ignorance and of selfishness affecting the many millions
prodigally lavished by the wielders of Federal authority, the
lust of office, and the prevalence of corruption, I often regard
the struggle of 1860 with less of hope than of apprehension.
Yet, when I think of the steady diffusion of intelligence, the
manifest antagonism between the Slavery Extensionists and
the interests of Free Labor, when I consider how vital and
imminent is the necessity for the passage of the Free Land
Bill ; when I feel how the very air of the nineteenth century
vibrates to the pulsations of the great heart of Humanity,
beating higher and higher with aspirations for universal
freedom, until even barbarous Russia is intent on striking
off the shackles of her fettered millions, I cannot repress the
hope that we are on the eve of a grand, beneficent victory.
But, whether destined to be waved in triumph over our next
great battlefield, or trodden into its mire through our defeat,
I entreat you to keep the Republican flag flying in Kansas,
so long as one man can anywhere be rallied to defend it.
Defile not the glorious dust of the martyred dead whose
freshly grassed graves lie thickly around us, by trailing that
flag in dishonor, or folding it in cowardly despair on this
soil so lately reddened by their patriotic blood. If it be
destined, in the mysterious Providence of God, to go down,
let the sunlight which falls lovingly upon their graves catch
the last defiant wave of its folds in the breeze which sweeps
over these prairies; let it be burned, not surrendered, when
no one remains to uphold it; and let its ashes rest forever
with theirs by the banks of the Marias des Cygnes! "
After the organization of the Republican party, the
Proslavery people who remained in the Territory
united with the old-line Democrats, who did not seem
FROM INDIANA TO KANSAS 5
to care whether slavery was voted up or voted down,
and thereafter sulked in their tents until the War of the
Rebellion broke out, when most of them stood for the
Union and proved their loyalty on the field of battle.
On November 19, 1858, President Buchanan ap-
pointed Samuel Medary, of Ohio, as Governor of the
Territory, and made other spasmodic efforts to check
the dastardly abuses and high-handed outrages of Pro-
slavery officials in Kansas. But he was handicapped
by traitors in his Cabinet and in both Houses of Con-
gress, who blocked his pathway at every step.
Governor Medary tried to be decent, but it was im-
possible for him to do his duty and hold his position.
He took the oath of office before Chief Justice Taney of
the Supreme Court in Washington, on December 1,
1858, and arrived in Kansas December 17.
On January 3, 1859, the Territorial Legislature con-
vened at Lecompton, and on the seventh it adjourned
to meet and hold its session at Lawrence.
THE WYANDOTTE STATE CONVENTION
In pursuance of authority from the Legislature,
Governor Medary, on March 7, issued his proclamation
calling an election to decide on holding a Constitutional
Convention. The election was held on March 28, and
the majority for a Constitution and State Government
was 3,881. So, on April 19, the Governor announced
an election to be held on June 4, for delegates, and des-
ignated Wyandotte as the place of meeting. On July
5, the delegates elect assembled and organized, as pro-
vided by law. The following is a complete list of the
members :
Member, and County Represented. Member, and County Represented.
J. M. Arthur, Linn. Josiah Lamb, Linn.
Caleb May, Atchison. S. A. Kingman, Brown.
J. J. Ingalls, Atchison. John P. Greer, Shawnee.
R. L. Williams, Douglas. J. A. Middleton, Marshall.
B. F. Simpson, Lykins (Miami). P. H. Townsend, Douglas.
KANSAS IN THE SIXTIES
Member, and County ^Represented. Member, and County Eepresented.
H. D. Preston, Shawnee.
W. E. Griffith, Bourbon.
T. S. Wright, Nemaha.
S. E. Hoffman, Woodson.
L. E. Palmer, Potawatami.
Jas. Hanway, Franklin.
Jas. Blood, Douglas.
Ed. Stokes, Douglas.
J. P. Slough, Leavenworth.
C. B. McClelland, Jefferson.
J. Stiarwalt, Doniphan.
P. S. Parks, Leavenworth.
Samuel Hippie, Leavenworth.
Wm. C. McDowell, Leavenworth.
John Wright, Leavenworth.
E. C. Foster, Leavenworth.
J. T. Barton, Johnson.
B. Wrigley, Doniphan.
J. Eitchie, Shawnee.
J. H. Signer, Allen.
J. M. Winchell, Osage.
J. M. Winchell .
John A. Martin
G. F. Warren
J. C. Burnett, Bourbon.
N. C. Blood, Douglas.
G. H. Lillie, Madison.
A. Crocker, Coffey.
Jas G. Blunt, Anderson.
W. Hutchinson, Douglas.
S. O. Thacher, Douglas.
S. D. Houston, Eiley.
W. McCulloch, Morris.
J. W. Forman, Doniphan.
E M. Hubbard, Doniphan.
Fred Brown, Leavenworth.
S. A. Stinson, Leavenworth.
A. D. McCune, Leavenworth.
Wm. Perry, Leavenworth.
Eobt. Graham, Atchison.
E. Moore, Jackson.
W. P. Dutton, Lykins (Miami).
E. G. Boss, Wabaunsee.
E. J. Porter, Doniphan.
J. T. Burris, Johnson.
President
Secretary
Sergeant-at-Arms
On July 29, the Convention completed its work and
submitted it to a vote of the people for ratification or
rejection. On October 4, 1859, an election was held and
the Constitution ratified by a vote of about two to one.
ELECTED TO FIKST STATE LEGISLATURE
On December 6, 1859, in accordance with the Con-
stitution previously adopted, an election was held for
the purpose of selecting State Officers, Judges of the
Supreme Court, a Member of Congress, and Members
of the State Legislature. At this election I was chosen
as a Member of the House of Eepresentatives by an
overwhelming majority.
Thus after a struggle of five years, between the
Free-State and Proslavery parties, with the Govern-
ment at Washington on the side of the slave power, and
a horde of assassins and border-ruffians from the Slave
FROM INDIANA TO KANSAS 7
States prowling about the Territory and seeking the
lives of Free-State settlers, the foundation for a Free-
State Government was laid in solid granite.
It was the beginning of the end. The Free-State
men, though greatly outnumbered when the struggle
began, stood their ground resolutely and returned blow
for blow. From the beginning it was war to the knife.
The magnitude of the issue involved was scarcely un-
derstood by either of the contending forces. The ob-
ject of the Free-State people was to make Kansas a
free State and secure homes therein. The purpose of
the Proslavery party was to make Kansas a Slave State
and thereby make slavery national and freedom
sectional.
Yes, it was the beginning of a new era; a deadly
blow at the institution of human slavery. In Kansas
the battle was over, and we had only to wait for the cur-
tain to rise and reveal a new and most brilliant star in
the blue field of the West. From this time forward, the
Free-State men held the political reins, until Mr. Lin-
coln was elected President, and the State of Kansas
was admitted into the Union.
At that time the Territory extended from the west-
ern boundary of the State of Missouri to the summit of
the Eocky Mountains, and from the thirty-seventh to
the fortieth degree of north latitude ; a vast area of un-
preempted public lands, rich in agricultural and min-
eral resources and open to the settlement rights of the
people.
The Winter of 1859-60 was pleasant: the settlers
were breaking the primeval soil, erecting homes, and
planting orchards; and evidence of thrift and pros-
perity was visible on every hand.
THE DROUGHT OF 1860
The Spring and Summer of 1860 came and passed
without any rainfall, and yet the prairie grass was nu-
tritious, the cattle and horses were rolling fat, and wild
8 KANSAS IN THE SIXTIES
game we had in abundance ; besides, the gardens were
fairly good, and a considerable quantity of corn was
produced on the valley lands. So, as a matter of fact,
there was no real suffering for food on account of the
drought.
And yet it was proclaimed by aid solicitors, at home
and abroad, who were at work largely for themselves,
rather than for suffering humanity, that the people
of Kansas were living on roots and herbs, and many of
them actually starving. That was not true. Neverthe-
less, a vast amount of provisions, clothing, and money
was contributed by honest, sympathetic people in States
east of the Mississippi and shipped to the Kansas Aid
Society for distribution. Some of the provisions and
clothing were distributed where they would do the most
good, but as for the distribution of the money that was
sent, no report as yet has been made. The whole
scheme was a fraud, and it gave Kansas a set-back
from which the Territory and State did not recover for
many years.
Anderson County, where I resided at that time, Was
perhaps an average of the counties in the Territory,
and the people of the county refused absolutely to ac-
cept any of the "aid goods"; yet they fared almost as
well as they had in previous years. One enterprising
merchant sent three wagons to the Missouri River for
supplies, but when they returned laden with beans and
stale provisions, the people would not accept the stuff.
The teamsters brought suit against the merchant for
freight charges, and the goods when sold did not pay
for the cost of transportation.
The Territory was then but sparsely settled, and
while the drought of that year was a heavy blow, it by
no means made beggars of the bona fide settlers. Gro-
ceries and clothing could be bought then, as now, and
wild game in abundance was within easy reach. Flocks
of prairie chickens were within rifle-shot of almost
every cabin door. Deer were plentiful, and buffalo by
PROM INDIANA TO KANSAS 9
the million roamed the plains, from our then frontier
settlements to the eastern base of the Rocky Mountains.
BUFFALO HUNT
a
During the Fall of 1860, the year of our ever-mem-
orable drought, I had the pleasure of accompanying a
hunting party to the buffalo range. On the first of Oc-
tober, our party, consisting of sixteen braves, with
four wagons, and a good supply of arms, ammunition,
saddle hores, etc., started from Garnett and journeyed
westward through Coffey, Greenwood, and Butler
Counties to the border-line where civilization and sav-
agery met. J. R. Meade's ranch on the White Water,
eight miles west of old Eldorado, was the outpost, the
last of the white man 's habitations. From there west-
ward we were guided by moccasin tracks and the buf-
falo trail.
The first night in the savage regions we camped on
the west bank of the Little Arkansas River, five miles
north of where the city of Wichita now stands. Before
crossing the river that evening, we saw our first buffalo,
and that night the wolves threatened an attack from all
sides. The next morning one of our warriors, who had
" fought Indians from the Powder River country to
the Staked Plains of Texas," startled our Nimrods
with the statement that while strolling out that morn-
ing, he had discovered the trail of an Osage war party
going west. This had a tendency to dampen the ardor
of those who heard the story. After discussing the re-
port briefly, we deemed it advisable to organize for
offensive warfare; whereupon I was unanimously
elected Captain, with instructions to allow no guilty
Osage to approach the camp.
After breakfast the expedition moved south and
crossed the main Arkansas River near the junction of
the two rivers. While the command was crossing the
river and winding its way through the low bottom to
higher ground, I crossed and rode down on the west
10 KANSAS IN THE SIXTIES
side, crossed again to the east, and selected the site
where Wichita now stands; but of this I shall speak
later on. That night we camped on the Cowskin, about
twelve miles from the Arkansas Eiver. From the Cow-
skin we moved in a southwesterly direction to the Nin-
nescah, some forty miles from the Arkansas, and there
camped and killed buffalo, deer, and wild turkey for a
week or so ; then we moved due north to the Arkansas,
and thence north to Cow Creek, about fifteen miles
above where the city of Hutchinson now stands. Here
we camped two weeks, and after killing all the buffalo,
deer, turkey, geese, ducks, and other things essential,
we folded our tents, packed our wagons with the fruits
of the expedition, and turned our faces toward
civilization.
The first day on our return brought us to the cross-
ing of Cow Creek, and thence southward a mile to a
beautiful grove of large cottonwood trees on the Ar-
kansas River.
EACE FOB LIFE
When we crossed Cow Creek, one of our athletes,
William Wetts, suggested that while the other fellows
were going on to the grove and making camp, he and I
should go north a half-mile, where a large herd of buf-
falo were grazing, and kill just one more for luck. I
readily accepted his proposition, and when the boys
had moved on we two started and walked slowly toward
the herd.
It was our intention to select a young buffalo and,
when within proper distance, both shoot at the same
time. As yet the buffalo had not scented us and we
moved closer and closer until within about two hundred
yards of the one we had selected as our meat. While
waiting for the innocent little fellow to turn partly
around so as to give us a better aim, a huge buffalo
bull away back in the herd, snuffed danger from afar,
and, raising his head, saw us standing out in the open
FROM INDIANA TO KANSAS 11
prairie with guns at ready. The old bison instantly
threw himself into line of battle, and, sounding the war-
whoop, started toward us at a rattling pace.
Billy, my companion, had previously talked much
of his prowess and athletic attainments ; and I, as Com-
mander-in-Chief of the expedition, had, no doubt, said
some things indicative of what I might be able to do
under extraordinary circumstances ; but now, the time
for boasting had passed. A really dangerous foe was
approaching at a rapid pace. The other warriors of
our command were in camp a mile and a half distant.
Here we were standing, like two orphans, in bold relief
out on a broad smooth prairie with absolutely nothing
behind which we could take shelter.
My first thought was to let the brute come within
close range and then deploy to the right and left and
both give him a broad-sider as he passed, and I so di-
rected. But when he got within fifty or sixty paces of
our line, Billy, the left wing of my army, broke and
started at the top of his speed back over the trail on
which we had moved out. Not wishing to fight the bat-
tle all alone, I quickly followed, thinking we might
reach the crossing of Cow Creek, a half-mile away.
The speed of a buffalo is about the same as that
of an average horse — but they seemingly never tire.
From previous boasting, our speed was supposed to be
about the same as that of a deer or an antelope. We
were both in our prime — twenty-five years of age and
in fine running trim. Billy was short in stature and
fat as a pig; and I was tall, lean, and slept little o'
nights.
When Billy broke our line of battle, I was resting
with one knee on the ground and ready to leap to one
side and shoot the buffalo behind the fore shoulder,
our favorite place for shooting them. The range of the
guns we then had was short, and a rifle ball would not
penetrate the skull of a buffalo. So, when Billy started,
I hastily concluded to reserve my fire and go with him.
12 KANSAS IN THE SIXTIES
When I started, he was already under full sail about
fifteen or twenty paces in advance, but in a few mo-
ments I was by his side and, in fact, slightly gaining on
him. He called to me, saying, " Crawford, don't
leave me ! Let 's die together ! " I then slackened my
pace and we ran side by side for about a quarter of a
mile, holding our distance pretty well ahead of the
buffalo.
But by this time we were beginning to tire and Billy
was breathing quite loud and fast. Then the buffalo
began gradually to gain on us. After running perhaps
two hundred yards farther, I was pretty tired, but
Billy was about exhausted; then I saw, a mile to our
left-front, some men in a two-horse wagon coming at
full speed to our relief. That encouraged us somewhat
and we made a half-turn to meet the wagon. The buf-
falo turned when we did, and was within twenty feet
of us, when the horses, running at full speed, struck
him broadside; then he turned away toward the Ar-
kansas River, apparently as fresh as when the race be-
gan. We did not give him a parting shot but the boys
from camp, seeing the conclusion of our run for life,
went out with their guns and took his scalp before he
reached the river.
While out on this hunting expedition, every member
of our party had his experience, which was both new
and beneficial. At that time the wild Indians were
roaming the plains in search of anything they might
find lying around loose. The Osages and Kaws were
also out, laying in their winter supply of buffalo meat,
and watching for a chance to steal ponies from the wild
tribes, and horses from hunting parties.
INDIAN VISITORS
On one occasion a party of friendly Osages ap-
proached our camp, with good intentions, of course, but
did not venture within range of our guns. No doubt
it was the same band that had crossed the Little
FROM INDIANA TO KANSAS 13
Arkansas a few hours ahead of us when we were going
out. The Osages at that time, when on their reserva-
tion, were a noble specimen of the half -civilized tribes ;
but when out on the plains hunting, they stuck feathers
in their war-bonnets and went wild as the Cheyennes ;
yet like all other Indians, and many white people, they
had a wholesome respect for force. They would steal
anything they could get their hands on and plunder the
camps of small hunting parties, when there was no dan-
ger of losing their own scalps ; but people who under-
stood them had little to fear.
Our visitors were anxious to come into camp, but
seeing resolute men with guns in their hands, concluded
that discretion was the better part of valor, and sat on
their fleet ponies in battle array until " Old Relia-
bility " ( J. P. Hiner), a young man of twenty, and my-
self, went out and motioned them to move on. No doubt
we should have had trouble with this band but for the
fact that their mortal enemies, the Cheyennes and Ara-
pahoes, two wild warlike tribes of the plains, were lying
in wait for them a day or so's journey to the west.
For the Cheyennes and Arapahoes they had a whole-
some respect, because when they met on the open
prairie, the surviving Osages usually went back to their
reservation on foot.
These were but a part of the thrilling events inci-
dent to this hunting expedition of Territorial days. To
relate all the wild rides, reckless adventures, and hair-
breadth escapes would require a volume. What has
already been said is sufficient to give the young people
of the present day an idea of the hunter's life and con-
ditions generally, on the border at an early day.
Having accomplished the purpose of the expedition
and established a reputation as hunters, we called in
the guard, folded our tents and turned our faces home-
ward. On our return to Garnett, early in November,
the fruits of the expedition — four wagon-loads of
choice meats and a train-load of romance — were dis-
14 KANSAS IN THE SIXTIES
tributed among the good people of Anderson County,
and in return, the happy girls with rosy cheeks and
calico frocks, gave us a " buffalo dance " that was en-
joyed by all, and especially by those who had roamed
the plains for a month in search of something to kill.
While out hunting, our party had no difficulty in
finding all the buffalo we wanted ; and the same is true
of other parties who went out that Fall. There were
millions of buffalo and deer in the territory now em-
braced in the counties of Sumner, Sedgwick, Reno, Bice,
McPherson, Saline, Ellsworth, Ottawa, Mitchell, Cloud,
and Republic ; all within reach of the people of Kansas.
The buffalo meat in the fall of the year, when the ani-
mals were fat, was in every way equal to that of corn-
fed beeves, and, I think, superior.
CHAPTER II
THE DAWN OF LIGHT
LINCOLN 'S ELECTION STATE GOVERNMENT FORT SUM-
TER FIRED UPON AND PRESIDENT'S CALL FOR TROOPS.
THE Winter of 1860-61 was pleasant, and all eyes
were turned on Congress to see what might be
done with our new Constitution. The Free-State peo-
ple wanted it accepted, and the State admitted into the
Union. The Proslavery people were still hoping
against hope. The struggle in Kansas had been long
and sometimes bitter and bloody, but now the people
were quiet, and things generally had become normal.
The Act of Congress of May 30, 1854, establishing
the Territory of Kansas, left the question of slavery to
be decided by the bona fide settlers of the Territory;
that Act was subsequently followed by a decision of the
Supreme Court which authorized the slave-owners to
take their human chattels into any of the Territories
of the United States.
Kansas, being contiguous to a Slave State and well
adapted to slave labor, became at once a bone of con-
tention between the Free-State and Proslavery people.
The latter were desperate, and resorted to every means,
fair and foul, honest and dishonest, to establish slavery
in Kansas. Their dupes from Western Missouri, not
one in a hundred of whom owned a slave, swarmed
across the border into Kansas and committed crimes
most brutal and barbarous. They came in squads, com-
panies, and regiments, and (as already shown) elected
citizens of Missouri as members of the Territorial Leg-
islature — a Legislature, the majority of whose mem-
is
16 KANSAS IN THE SIXTIES
bers committed perjury when they took the oath of of-
fice. They met at the Shawnee Mission, near Westport,
Missouri, and enacted a code of laws for the Territory
of Kansas by taking the statutes of Missouri and strik-
ing out the words, " State of Missouri," where they
appeared, and inserting in their place the words,
" Kansas Territory." Such were our laws until sub-
sequently changed by a Free-State Legislature.
The Missourians, reinforced by renegades from
other Slave States, and led by David Atchison, Colonel
Doniphan, Jim Burnes, Stringfellow, Buford, and
smaller lights, raided the settlements of Kansas, robbed
and murdered Free-State settlers, burned their houses,
sacked the city of Lawrence, and committed other out-
rages horrible to relate.
But while these scenes were being enacted by the
Proslavery cohorts under the eye of the administration
at Washington, and with the assistance of Federal of-
ficers in Kansas, the Free-State men and women were
not unmindful of their rights, nor indifferent as to re-
sults. James H. Lane, Charles Robinson, John Brown,
S. C. Pomeroy, Marcus J. Parrott, W. A. Phillips, Mrs.
Charles Robinson, and many other heroic men and
women were in the saddle, booted and spurred, and
ready to do and die in defence of their homes, of free-
dom and of a Free State.
From '54 to '57 the Proslavery people had behind
them the Federal Government, the Territorial Govern-
ment, the United States Army, and a horde of border
ruffians from Western Missouri; but the Free-State
people stood firm as the Spartans at Thermopylae, and
returned blow for blow.
Finally the tide reached its zenith and the cohorts
of slavery began to waver. By the election of 1856,
James Buchanan, whose eyes were dim, succeeded
Franklin Pierce as President — but the vote for Fre-
mont, the Republican nominee of that year, indicated
a fast gathering storm. The slogan of Republicans in
THE DAWN OF LIGHT 17
that campaign was, Free speech, free press, free Kan-
sas, and Fremont; and the result was sufficient to open
the eyes of all who cared to see.
On the fourth day of March, 1857, Mr. Buchanan
was inaugurated as President; and while he slightly
modified the policy of his predecessor, and timidly tried
to clip the wings of the Proslavery birds that had been
flying high in Kansas, he failed utterly and ignomini-
ously. At the beginning he surrounded himself with
Cabinet officers and Proslavery advisers, most of whom
were saturated with treason and already laying their
plans for secession.
After the election of 1856, the immigration to Kan-
sas was largely from the Free States, and soon the
prairies were dotted over with the cabins of Free-
State settlers ; new towns sprang up as if by magic, and
the newcomers were busy selecting claims on the pub-
lic domain for permanent homes.
In the Fall of 1857 a new Legislature was elected
by the Free-State party and new laws enacted. During
the years 1858, 1859 immigration continued to pour
into the Territory and push on to the frontier settle-
ments, and new fields of golden grain gladdened the
hearts of the people. The Constitution we had adopted
and submitted to Congress was Republican in form,
and settled for all time the question as to whether Kan-
sas should be a Free or Slave State.
The year 1860 in Kansas was like the dead calm be-
fore a storm. Peace and quiet reigned throughout the
Territory. Every day the sun shone brightly, without
a drop of rain from January to January. All eyes
were on the political storm then raging in the States.
The political horizon was dark and foreboding, with an
admixture of purple clouds which occasionally sent
forth forked streaks of lightning. The battle for free-
dom having been won in Kansas, the question of
slavery was transferred to the States for final
determination.
18 KANSAS IN THE SIXTIES
LINCOLN'S ELECTION
Abraham Lincoln, who had been nominated as the
Kepublican candidate for the Presidency, stood reso-
lutely bearing aloft the banner of freedom.
John Bell, an old-line Whig, and Stephen A. Doug-
las, an old-line Democrat, were the nominees of their
respective parties, and stood for the Government as it
was, not caring whether the Territories adopted or re-
jected slavery.
John C. Breckenridge was the standard-bearer of
the Proslavery people, who were struggling under the
' ' Dred Scott ' ' decision, to make slavery national and
freedom sectional.
From start to finish, it was a red-hot fight, with
justice, humanity, and the heavy artillery on the Re-
publican side. Mr. Lincoln, the grandest American of
them all, and true as the needle to the pole, was elected.
His election meant war — and war it was.
The rejoicing in Kansas over the election of Mr. Lin-
coln had scarcely subsided, when further glad tidings
of joy were flashed over the wires from Washington,
announcing that Kansas had been admitted into the
Union as a sovereign State. This was glory enough,
because the people had long felt the injustice of tyr-
anny and taxation without representation.
Thus ended the stormy scenes of Territorial days ;
the rule and misrule of heartless officials. One by one,
they packed their duds and stole silently away. What
else they stole has not, as yet, been fully revealed. One
thing is certain: they left the Territorial Treasury
empty. Another is equally certain: an appropriation
by Congress of fifty thousand dollars for the erection
of a Territorial building was drawn from the Treasury
at Washington, but no building was erected. And still
another: the ballot-boxes were stolen by Territorial
officials and stuffed with fraudulent votes, in order to
enable them to certify the election of Proslavery men to
THE DAWN OF LIGHT 19
the State Legislature. But they are gone, most of them
to the happy hunting-grounds ; and may the good Lord
look with pity and compassion upon their benighted
souls and official iniquities !
STATE GOVERNMENT
As previously mentioned, the State of Kansas was
admitted into the Union on January 29, 1861. On Feb-
ruary 9, the Hon. Charles Robinson took the oath of of-
fice as Governor, and issued his proclamation directing
the members elected to the first State Legislature to
assemble at Topeka on March 26, 1861. At the time
designated the Legislature convened, organized, and
notified the Governor that the two Houses were ready
to receive any communication he had to make.
The new State Government, which went into opera-
tion on February 9, 1861, was divided into three sepa-
rate and distinct departments, namely, the Executive,
the Legislative, and the Judicial.*
The Senate consisted of twenty-five members with
Lieutenant-Governor J. P. Root as the presiding of-
ficer, and John J. Ingalls as Secretary.
The House of Representatives consisted of one hun-
dred members, and elected W. W. Updegraff as
Speaker, D. B. Emmert as Chief Clerk, and A. R. Banks
as Assistant.
After the appointment of Committees and the re-
ception of the Governor's Message, the next important
duty was that of electing two United States Senators.
A number of prominent gentlemen from different parts
of the State were candidates; and after balloting in
joint session for two hours, James H. Lane, of Law-
rence, and Samuel C. Pomeroy, of Atchison, were de-
clared elected. Lane at all times during the balloting
had a majority of the votes cast ; but as between Pom-
eroy and Marcus J. Parrott, of Leavenworth, the vote
"See Appendix.
20 KANSAS IN THE SIXTIES
was close, and there was doubt in the minds of many
members as to which one was in fact elected. Mr. Pom-
eroy, however, received the certificate and that settled
the question. After the election of United States Sen-
ators, the routine work of the Legislature moved along
in the even tenor of its way.
It was my good fortune to be appointed Chairman
of the Committee on Counties and County Lines. Col-
onel Colton, of Lykins County, introduced, and had
referred to my committee, a Bill changing the name of
that county to Miami. After due consideration the Bill
was reported and passed.
FORT SUMTEB FIEED UPON — PRESIDENT 's CALL FOR TROOPS
I was also a member of the Military Committee,
which perhaps inspired me to higher military duties.
It was then apparent that war was inevitable, and our
Military Committee proceeded at once to prepare and
introduce in the House a Bill providing for the organ-
ization of the State Militia. I had also other measures
pending before the Legislature, when the stage from
Leavenworth brought word that Fort Sumter had been
fired upon. This startling news set everybody on fire,
and thereafter the Legislature had no charms for me.
On April 15, 1861, President Lincoln issued his call
for 75,000 volunteers, allotting to Kansas two regi-
ments of infantry. Soon thereafter the Governor sent
for Colonel E. B. Mitchell and myself and tendered us
each a commission to recruit a company for the Second
Eegiment. To Mitchell was given Linn County in
which to raise his company ; and I had assigned to me
Anderson and Franklin Counties, It is needless to say
that we readily accepted,
CHAPTER III
OFF TO THE WAK
ORGANIZATION OF THE SECOND KANSAS INFANTRY — A TRIP
TO TOPEKA BEHIND A WILD TEAM MUSTERED INTO
U. S. SERVICE, JUNE 22, 1861 EXPEDITION TO AND
SKIRMISH AT FORSYTH BATTLE OF DUG SPRINGS
AUGUST 2, 1861 — BATTLE OF WILSON *S CREEK AUGUST
10, 1861 BATTLE OF SHELBINA REGIMENT RETURNS
TO FORT LEAVENWORTH AND IS MUSTERED OUT OCTOBER
31, 1861.
ON the tenth of May the House granted me leave of
absence and I immediately returned to Garnett to
commence recruiting. On arriving there, I announced
a public meeting in Garnett for the following Saturday,
and then proceeded to Ohio City and appointed a re-
cruiting officer for Franklin County. At the meeting
so announced, many of the young men from Anderson
County, and quite a number from Franklin, enlisted.
Speedily a full company of volunteer infantry was or-
ganized by the election of officers as follows :
Samuel J. Crawford . . . Captain
John G. Lindsay .... First Lieutenant
A. R. Morton '. Second Lieutenant
Samuel K. Cross .... Ensign
On May 14 the company, amid cheers and tears,
started from Garnett on its perilous journey. Our first
camp was at Ohio City, where the Franklin County boys
swung into line, and the company received fatherly ad-
vice and words of encouragement from the Hon. P. P.
Elder, who at the time was a member of the State Sen-
21
22 KANSAS IN THE SIXTIES
ate. Not only did we receive good advice and words of
cheer from him, but he tendered me the loan of the
sword which his grandfather used in the Eevolutionary
"War. In due time it was returned to him untarnished.
On May 15, by the aid of transportation furnished
by the good people of Anderson and Franklin Counties,
the company moved at an early hour ; and on May 17 it
reached Lawrence and marched down Massachusetts
Avenue under flying colors to the step of thrilling mu-
sic— " The Girl I Left Behind Me " — rendered with
fife and drum by Henry Neal and Robt. Beck. On ar-
riving at Lawrence, the officers previously elected were
commissioned by the Governor, and the company was
immediately sworn into the service of the State.
ORGANIZATION OF THE SECOND KANSAS INFANTRY
In due time nine other companies arrived, and the
Second Kansas Infantry was organized by the appoint-
ment of officers as follows :
Kobt. B. Mitchell .... Colonel
Charles W. Blair .... Lieutenant- Colonel
William F. Cloud . . . . Major
Ed. D. Thompson .... Adjutant
S. W. Eldridge . . . . Quartermaster
A. B. Massey Surgeon
E. L. Pattee Assistant Surgeon
R. C. Brant Chaplain
The regimental officers, field and staff, having been
commissioned, the organization of the regiment was
completed by the lettering and assignment of the sev-
eral companies to their respective places in the line.*
A TRIP TO TOPEKA BEHIND A WILD TEAM
While waiting for orders to go to the front, I visited
Topeka to see how the Legislature was behaving, and
*See Appendix for roster of regimental officers.
OFF TO THE WAR 23
to help the Lawrence boys with their University Bill.
At that time we had no railroads from Lawrence to
Topeka; no telegraph nor telephone; no airships nor
automobiles. So, my friend, C. W. Babcock, who was
deeply interested in having the State University lo-
cated at Lawrence, drove out to camp with a span of
wild fiery horses and invited me to ride to Topeka with
him. I had not as yet resigned my seat in the Legisla-
ture, and, of course, had a right to vote. Having some
other matters pending before the Legislature in which
I was interested, I accepted his kind offer, and within
two hours we rode into Topeka.
Talk about fast driving — our team fairly flew. Mr.
Babcock held the reins and tried to hold the team but
finally gave it up and let them go. Fortunately the
horses kept in the road and after climbing the hills and
leaping the bad crossings from Lecompton to Tecum-
seh, they began to slacken their gait, and finally they
came down to earth and gave Mr. Babcock an oppor-
tunity to breathe. I was frightened, perhaps as much
or more than was he, but being a soldier I did not dare
tell him so. When the danger-line was passed he rolled
his big black eyes around at me and said, " What do
you think of that for a spin ? " ' ' Oh, " I said, « « that 's
nothing, when a fellow gets used to it. It just suits me ;
but I have been asking myself how you were going to
get back to Lawrence." He replied, " We '11 go back
at night when the fool horses can't see anything to
scare them. ' ' We then drove on to the hotel, and after
dinner set about to tell the Legislature what to do and
how to do it.
In the evening we went to a dance, and being at that
time single, and consequently in possession of our in-
alienable rights, we stayed late. It seemed as though
the more our girls danced, the more they wanted to
dance. I was anxious to be in camp at Lawrence the
next morning at daylight and Mr. Babcock had prom-
ised to have me there. But that did n 't count with our
24 KANSAS IN THE SIXTIES
partners in the ballroom. " On with the dance! '
seemed to be the order of the night.
At one o'clock the dance closed; at two A. M. Mr.
Babcock and I started from Topeka with our wild team
for Lawrence. The atmosphere was lovely and the
stars shone bright. The horses went at a steady gait of
about ten miles per hour until within five miles of Law-
rence, when, passing a farm-house they " saw some-
thing," took fright, and dashed away at full speed over
the prairie, heading straight toward a precipice and a
deep canyon. Not caring to go over such a precipice
at that hour in the morning, I leaped out of the car-
riage and that caused the horses to circle at the very
verge and turn suddenly back toward the road. In
turning, they upset the carriage and ran until it was
scattered in fragments over the prairie and themselves
were badly crippled.
We were both slightly disfigured, considerably
frightened, but not seriously hurt. When the excite-
ment had subsided, Mr. Babcock looked over toward
Mount Oread and said, * * It seems as though these Ara-
bian steppers were trying to make us ded-i-cate the
State University before it is located. ' ' After arrang-
ing with a young man to bring the horses and wreck-
age to town, we rode in with a farmer and told Mr. Nor-
ton, the owner of the team, that we should not want it
again that day.
For a month or so the companies were kept busy
drilling and studying " The Art of War in Europe."
On June 19 the regiment drew arms from the State,
and on the morning of the twentieth they started on the
double-quick for Kansas City. We crossed the Kansas
River at Lawrence, and marched to Wyandotte, about
forty-five miles, the first day. The cause of the sudden-
ness of this hasty movement was a skirmish between
a company of regular troops and a bunch of Rebel
recruits near Independence, Missouri.
OFF TO THE WAR 25
MUSTERED INTO U. S. SERVICE, JUNE 22, 1861
On the twenty-second day of June we moved over to
Kansas City, and were mustered into the United States
service for three years, or during the war. On June
30, the regiment was attached to the command of Major
Sturgis and ordered to join General Lyon on the march
from Boonville to Springfield, Missouri. On July 1,
Sturgis moved with his command from Kansas City
and on July 7, joined General Lyon at the crossing of
the Osage, eight miles west of Osceola. From there
General Lyon moved with his command to Grand
Prairie, where he was joined by Colonel Sigel on his
retreat from Carthage; and then with his combined
force — about six thousand effective troops — General
Lyon moved on to Springfield.
EXPEDITION TO AND SKIRMISH AT FORSYTH
On July 20, General Lyon ordered General Sweeney
on an expedition over the Boston Mountains to For-
syth, about fifty miles south of Springfield, with the
First Iowa and Second Kansas Infantry ; a section of
Totten's battery and a battalion of the Fourth
Cavalry.
Forsyth was a small town on the north bank of
White River in Southern Missouri, where a large
amount of supplies for the Confederate troops had
been gathered and stored. Captain Stanley, with one
company of the Second Kansas and two companies
of the Fourth Cavalry, led the advance. When within
striking distance he made a dash forward, captured the
town, all the Rebel stores, and a number of prisoners,
and drove a Rebel regiment into the hills and across
the river.
The last four miles of the march were made by the
infantry and artillery at a double-quick ; but when we
arrived, Stanley had finished the work and was holding
the town, the supplies, and the captured prisoners.
Nevertheless the Second Kansas advanced on the town
26 KANSAS IN THE SIXTIES
in line of battle and had the satisfaction of sending a
few volleys into the ranks of the water-soaked regi-
ment that had rallied on the south bank of the river.
This was our first experience on the battlefield, and it
seemed great sport, while we were beyond the range
of the enemy's guns. The purpose of the expedition
being accomplished, we returned to Springfield, and
found General Lyon and all in camp actively preparing
for a great battle.
On the first of August we were again ordered to be
ready to march with forty rounds of ammunition in our
cartridge boxes. That looked like business, and every
man was instructed to prepare himself accordingly.
General Lyon's scouts and outposts had kept him well
informed as to the movements of the enemy. It was
known that the Confederate generals — McCulloch and
Price — were concentrating their forces at Cassville
and in that vicinity, with the intention of attacking
General Lyon at the earliest possible moment.
It was also known that the combined forces of Mc-
Culloch and Price outnumbered Lyon's army more than
two to one ; and yet he was left in that remote part of
the State, one hundred and twenty miles from, the rail-
road, with his men on half-rations, and the terms of
enlistment of many of the troops rapidly expiring. He
was greatly worried and vexed by reason of such treat-
ment from department headquarters. He had been
promised reinforcements and supplies sufficient to en-
able him to hold Southwest Missouri and protect the
lives and property of the Union people of that part of
the State. But when the enemy was advancing against
him in overwhelming numbers, and when it was too
late to retreat, he was told that he must take care of
himself.
General Lyon was a true soldier and ready to do or
die for his country and the loyal people of Missouri.
He called a Council of War, and notified his officers
of the deplorable situation and of his determination to
OFF TO THE WAR 27
fight. They all agreed with him, and the question was
settled.
BATTLE OF DUG SPEINGS, AUGUST 2, 1861
The enemy having advanced on the Cassville Road
to within twenty-five miles of Springfield, General
Lyon, thinking it was only General McCulloeh's divi-
sion, moved with his available force on August 1, in-
tending to strike McCulloch first and Price afterwards.
That night he camped at Wilson's Creek twelve miles
from Springfield. The next morning, August 2, he ad-
vanced about six miles, when he struck General Rains 's
brigade of Price's division, which showed that Price
and McCulloch had united their forces. After a sharp
engagement of three hours, in which artillery was
freely used, the enemy was routed and driven back on
McCulloeh's division encamped on Crane Creek, ten
miles distant. The day was intensely hot and the
thirst of the men was unendurable.
The Second Kansas Infantry was advancing in line
of battle through the brush on the right of the road,
while Captain Fred. Steele with a battalion of Regu-
lar infantry was on the left, with Captain Stanley's
cavalry on his left, and Totten's battery on and near
the road in the centre. The enemy in Steele 's front
charged his line, which was falling back slowly, when
Captain Stanley made a sabre charge and drove the
enemy in confusion from the field. The Second Kansas,
famishing for water and mad at the sight of Steele 's
battalion falling back, followed Stanley without orders
until we reached Dug Springs, where the men quenched
their thirst to the heart's content. The Second Kan-
sas was far in advance of the rest of the infantry and
artillery, but we held our position until Stanley re-
turned from the pursuit of the enemy and then went
into camp for the night, three miles in advance of the
main command.
The next morning General Lyon, with the remainder
28 KANSAS IN THE SIXTIES
of his troops, came forward to the springs and camped
in the valley near-by until the morning of the fourth,
when he countermarched with his command and re-
turned to Springfield, arriving there in the afternoon
of the fifth.
After the affair at Dug Springs, General McCulloch
assumed command of all the Confederate forces in
Southwest Missouri, and moved forward to Wilson's
Creek.
General Lyon, in his report to department head-
quarters of August 4, 1861, stated his forces, and con-
cluded as follows :
FIRST BRIGADE, MAJOR STURGIS
Four companies cavalry .... 250
Four companies First U. S. Infantry (Plum-
mer's) 350
Two companies Second Missouri Volunteers . 200
One company artillery (Captain Totten's
battery) 84
884
SECOND BRIGADE, SIGEI/S
Third Missouri Volunteers . . . 700
Fifth Missouri Volunteers .... 600
Second Artillery (battery) .... 120
1,420
THIRD BRIGADE, LIEUTENANT-COLONEL ANDREWS
First Missouri Volunteers .... 900
Four companies infantry .... 300
One battery artillery 64
1,264
FOURTH BRIGADE, DEFTZLER's
Two Kansas regiments (First and Second) . 1,400
First Iowa Regiment (Colonel Bates) . 900
Grand Total ...... 5,868
OFF TO THE WAR 29
I have made every exertion to ascertain the enemy's
forces ; and though this is very difficult, I am satisfied it will
reach 15,000, and in an attempt to surround and cut me off
there may be gathered 20,000 ; most of whom will be ill-con-
ditioned troops, collected from Missouri and Arkansas, with
such firearms as each man may have, and being mounted,
have the means of threatening and annoying my command.
In addition to the above will be, of the enemy's forces, the
organized forces of McCulloch, of Texas, supposed to be 4,000
well-armed, and prepared for effective service.
In fact, I am under the painful necessity of retreating,
and can at most only hope to make my retreat good. I am in
too great haste to explain at length more fully. I have given
timely notice of my danger, and can only in the worst emer-
gencies submit to them.
Very respectfully, your obedient servant,
N. LYON,
Brigadier-General Commanding.*
This shows the deplorable situation in which Gen-
eral Lyon and his army had been placed by the political
Major-General and Department Commander, John C.
Fremont. Again, on the eve of the bloodiest battle of
the war, General Lyon wrote his last official letter as
follows :
SPRINGFIELD, Mo., August 9, 1861.
GENERAL :
I have just received your note of the 6th instant by spe*
cial messenger.
I retired to this place, as I have before informed you,
reaching here on the 5th. The enemy followed to within 16
miles of here. He has taken a strong position, and is recruit-
ing his supplies of horses, mules, and provisions by foraging
into the surrounding country, his large force of mounted
men enabling him to do this without much annoyance from
me. I find my position extremely embarrassing, and am at
present unable to determine whether I shall be able to main-
tain my ground or be forced to retire. I can resist any
attack from the front, but if the enemy move to surround
me, I must retire. I shall hold my ground as long as pos-
*H«bellioH Kecords, Vol. Ill, p. 48.
30 KANSAS IN THE SIXTIES
sible, though I may, without knowing how far, endanger the
safety of my entire force, with its valuable material, being
induced by the important considerations involved to take this
step. The enemy yesterday made a show of force about five
miles distant, and has doubtless a full purpose of making an
attack upon me.
N. LYON,
Brigadier-General, Commanding S. W. Expedition.*
MAJ. GEN. J. C. FREMONT,
Commanding Department of the West.
By this report and letter, as will be observed, Gen-
eral Lyon was determined to place the responsibility
of any disaster that might befall him and his army,
where it properly belonged. Having done all he could
to avert disaster, he turned his face resolutely toward
the enemy and gave the order, " Forward! '
BATTLE OF WILSON *S CKEEK, AUGUST 10, 1861
At six o'clock on the evening of August 9, the com-
mand broke camp at Springfield and marched in two
columns for Wilson's Creek, where the enemy was en-
camped. General Lyon commanded the main column,
composed of the brigades of Sturgis, Andrews, and
Deitzler, in person, and moved west four miles and
then southwest, so as to strike the left-centre of the
enemy's line as camped.
General Sigel, with his own brigade, moved out on
a road leading south for a short distance and thence
southwest, so as to strike the enemy's right-rear. At
a given signal they were to open the battle on both
flanks at daylight, or as soon thereafter as they could
get into position, and then force the fighting. Both
drove in the Rebel pickets and opened the battle about
the same time.
The enemy had stood in line of battle during the
previous night, ostensibly for the purpose of moving
* Eebellion Records, Vol. Ill, p. 57.
OFF TO THE WAR 31
on Springfield, but in reality because they expected
to be attacked by General Lyon. General Price, with
his Missouri forces, was 'in Lyon's front; early in the
morning he had broken ranks, and was eating break-
fast when his pickets were driven in. When the alarm
was given, his men flew to arms and hastily formed a
line as best they could.
General Lyon immediately advanced with Captain
Plummer 's battalion of Regular infantry, Major Oster-
haus's battalion of Missouri Volunteers, and a section
of Totten's battery, and opened the battle. The Eebel
line fell back slowly through a corn-field and over a
rail fence, where a stand was made until reinforce-
ments arrived. General Lyon then sent Lieutenant-
Colonel Andrews with the First Missouri Volunteers
to the support of Plummer. DuBois's battery and the
First Kansas were speedily formed on the brow of the
hill to the right of Osterhaus 's battalion, with the First
Iowa on the right of the First Kansas; a part of Tot-
ten's battery, the Second Kansas Infantry, and a bat-
talion of Regular troops were stationed on an eleva-
tion in the right-rear as a reserve. This, as I recollect,
was the formation of General Lyon's first line of battle.
General McCulloch, with the Texas and Arkansas
troops, was camped on the right of the Rebel line a
mile or so down the creek from Price. Sigel took Mc-
Culloch completely by surprise, and struck his camp
about the same time Lyon opened on Price. At first
McCulloch 's troops were panic-stricken, and fled in
confusion before Sigel 's line ; but the panic lasted only
a short time. Sigel 's men, thinking they had gained
the victory, stopped, broke ranks, and commenced pil-
laging the enemy's tents. That gave McCulloch 's reg-
iments, farther back, time to form and stop the stam-
pede. As soon as that was done McCulloch moved
back and swept Sigel and his whole brigade from the
field, except five pieces of artillery which were aban-
doned, and three hundred men whom he captured.
32 KANSAS IN THE SIXTIES
After this disgraceful, inexcusable blunder, those
of Sigel's men that escaped took to the woods, and
Sigel and one of his Colonels were back in Springfield
before ten o'clock in the morning. As soon as Sigel
and his troops left the field, McCulloch moved with his
whole force to assist Price, whose line was hard pressed
from right to left. He reached Price about nine o 'clock
and formed on his left, which prolonged their line of
battle beyond Lyon's right.
To meet McCulloch 's troops fresh from their sport
with Sigel, General Lyon ordered into action his entire
reserve. The First Missouri was brought over from
the left and stationed on the right of the First Iowa.
Totten's battery with a battalion of Regular infantry
was stationed by General Lyon and Colonel Mitchell
on the extreme right of the new line as formed.
Previous to this, General Lyon had been twice
slightly wounded and his horse shot from under him,
but he immediately remounted and was himself again.
When the Second was moving by the flank to its new
position on the right, General Lyon passed within ten
paces of where I was marching at the head of my com-
pany, and joined Colonel Mitchell at the head of the
regiment. They two were leading straight toward a
thicket of underbrush and scattering oak trees, when
a volley was fired from the thicket; Lyon was killed,
and Mitchell wounded.
The same volley struck Captain Tholen's company
on the flank and threw it into confusion. The next two
companies (Russell's and Mitchell's) also swayed back-
ward for a short distance. My company came next;
and I, being farther from the concealed enemy and hav-
ing more time to steady the men, wheeled the company
into line facing the ambuscade and sent a volley into
the bushes where the enemy was concealed. Captain
Mitchell immediately moved up and formed on my
right, with Captain Russell on his right, and then our
three companies speedily drove the enemy out of the
OFF TO THE WAR 33
bushes. We fired over Lyon 's body, and three or four
of Captain Tholen 's men, as they lay wounded.
As soon as the enemy was driven out of the brush
we wheeled our companies into line with the regiment,
to face a brigade of McCulloch's troops advancing up-
grade in our front. The Rebels having been driven out
of the timber and underbrush, and our three companies
having wheeled back into line with the regiment, Lieu-
tenant Gustavus Schreyer, of Tholen 's company, took
a detachment of his men and removed General Lyon's
body and all the wounded to the rear. Then Schreyer
was stationed with a part of Tholen 's company at the
edge of the timber, near where Lyon fell, to protect
the right flank of the Second Kansas as the regiment
stood.
Within a few minutes after these preliminary ar-
rangements on the extreme right of the Federal line,
McCulloch's forces came within range of our guns,
and a fight to the finish began. It was then about half-
past nine o'clock in the morning, and for two hours
or more the battle raged with terrific fury. In front
of the Second Kansas, and the same all along our entire
new line, the enemy advanced to within two hundred
yards, when the order to fire was given, followed im-
mediately by the usual order to load and fire at will.
One section of Totten's battery was stationed on an
elevation to the right-rear of the Second Kansas and
the other two sections along the line farther to the
left, and our whole line, with Totten's battery, opened
fire on the advancing Rebel line about the same time.
I do not know about the line in front of the regi-
ments and artillery on our left, but in front of the
Second Kansas and the section of Totten's battery on
our right, the Rebel line continued to advance under
a galling fire of musketry and canister to within about
one hundred steps, when they came to a stand-still.
Then for about three-quarters of an hour it was give
and take.
34 KANSAS IN THE SIXTIES
" Lay on McDuff!
And damned be him that first cries, ' Hold, enough! '
The sound of musketry and the roar of the cannon,
mingling and commingling in the air, was music to our
ears. But the sharp reports and shrieks from the
enemy's guns, as their shells went crashing through
the tree tops and often bursting over our heads, were
the reverse of music; at least they had no charms
for the Second Kansas. Nevertheless we were there
to do our duty, and we did it without flinching.
Both lines were comparatively fresh and full of
fight. It was then simply a question of real courage,
accurate shooting, and powers of endurance. The
Second Kansas stood like a wall of adamant and hurled
its missiles of death with defiance into the ranks of
the enemy. Officers and soldiers alike seemed to real-
ize that it was then or never. Steadily the battle went
on, and surely the lines were melting away.
In the heat of this engagement a Eebel officer, with
a detachment of cavalry, dashed against our right
flank but received a deadly volley from Lieutenant
Schreyer 's company which scattered them in all direc-
tions through the timber in their rear. In the confu-
sion that followed, the commanding officer lost con-
trol of himself, or his horse, and was carried at full
speed to the rear of Captain Russell's company, where
both he and his horse were killed, as he whirled to make
his escape.
Soon after this episode the Rebel line in our front
began to waver, and that was followed by a precipitate
retreat beyond the range of our guns. The Federal
line stood firm and awaited developments. It was ap-
parent that the enemy was bringing up his reserves
and re-forming for another engagement. While wait-
ing, we removed our dead and wounded to the rear and
a new supply of ammunition was distributed.
Meantime the left of our line was strengthened by
OFF TO THE WAR 35
the addition of infantry that had not participated in
the previous engagement, and by changing the position
of DuBois 's battery. Another section of Totten 's bat-
tery was also transferred from the left to the right.
Major Sturgis was then supposed to be in command,
but Gordon Granger was in the saddle and seemed to
me to be the leading spirit. Our line as rearranged
was in perfect order to meet whatever might be
brought against it. We had not long to wait.
The Rebel line was soon seen advancing over the
same ground, and apparently in the same order in
which it had previously advanced. Our line impa-
tiently awaited their coming. It required considerable
attention on the part of line officers in the Second to
keep the men from firing before the Rebels were within
suitable range. Steadily the Rebel line advanced, and
as soon as it reached the open ground in front, Totten 's
battery spoke with no uncertain sound, and DuBois 's
immediately followed. About the same time a Rebel
battery away in the rear opened on the Second Kansas
with shell which tore through the tops of the scrub
oak-trees over our heads.
Finally the Rebel line came within range of our
rifles and muskets, when a battle to the finish, the
bloodiest engagement of the day, began. As before,
they advanced to within close range, and then both lines
settled down to their bloody work. It was a square
open field fight, with no place for shirks or cowards.
For an hour it was crash, crash, crash, with men falling
dead and wounded all along the line. Finally, as in the
previous engagement, the Rebel line broke and fled in
confusion to the 'rear, leaving their dead and wounded
on the field.
It was now about half-past eleven o'clock; and after
remaining in line for half an hour or more, when there
was not a Rebel to be seen or heard anywhere on the
battlefield, except their wounded, the Second re-
ceived orders to fall back to where Major Sturgis was
36 KANSAS IN THE SIXTIES
concentrating the troops preparatory to a retreat
back to Springfield. We had fired the last shot, broken
the enemy's lines, driven him from the field in
disorder, and remained in line at the front for half
an hour, and we could not see the necessity for re-
treating.
Had Major Sturgis advanced his line, which stood
firm when the Eebels broke and fled, and turned his
cavalry loose on their rear, our victory would have
been complete. When we left the field, the road from
there to Crane Creek, twenty miles distant, was lined
with fleeing Eebels and it was their rear guard that
we last fought and defeated. But when McCulloch
learned that Sturgis was retreating, he naturally re-
turned with his rear guard and claimed the credit of
victory. By nine o'clock in the evening of the day of
the battle, his retreating troops began to pass Cass-
ville, Missouri, forty miles south of the battlefield, and
the stream of " mad warriors " did not cease until
after daylight the next morning — if the good people
of Cassville tell the truth.
When ordered to countermarch and abandon a
dearly won field, the Federal troops strung out and
sauntered along the road, on back to Springfield, some
swearing and some repeating the old adage,
" He who fights and runs away
May live to fight another day."
Our regiments and batteries arrived at Springfield all
along from four to six o 'clock in the evening, and were
ordered to be ready to continue the retreat at two
o 'clock the next morning.
When General Lyon's gallant and victorious army
reached Springfield, we found Sigel ready to assume
command and conduct a masterly retreat to Eolla, Mis-
souri. For full particulars of this retreat I must refer
the reader to the report of Major J. M. Schofield, who
OFF TO THE WAR 37
was Acting Adjutant-General when General Lyon fell.*
But to those who do not care to make this reference it
is sufficient, perhaps, to say that the skill and general-
ship displayed by Sigel were in keeping with his mas-
terly strokes of death and desolation inflicted on the
enemy at Wilson's Creek.
On August 18 the command reached Rolla, and on
the nineteenth I conveyed the wounded of the Second
Kansas by rail to the hospital in St. Louis. On the
twentieth I returned to Rolla, and in the absence of the
field officers, assumed command of the regiment. On
the twenty-fifth I moved to St. Louis and encamped in
one of the city parks.
On the first of September Colonel Blair resumed
command of the regiment and moved by boat to Han-
nibal, Missouri, and thence by rail to Shelbina. On
the third the regiment accompanied the Third Iowa In-
fantry on a raid to Paris, Missouri, and on the fourth
fought what some call the battle of Shelbina.
BATTLE OF SHELBINA
The command, consisting of the Second Kansas In-
fantry— about four hundred effective men — com-
manded by Lieutenant-Colonel Blair, and the Third
Iowa Infantry under the command of Colonel Will-
iams, having returned from Paris and encamped in the
village of Shelbina, was attacked early on the morning
of the fourth by General Green with apparently about
fifteen hundred mounted men and two pieces of artil-
lery. Blair and Williams had neither cavalry nor artil-
lery and consequently labored under a disadvantage.
Green planted his artillery a half-mile distant and
commenced shelling our line and the village. His cav-
alry was formed about the same distance from our line,
so it was impossible for us to reach him. He first
opened with his artillery from the edge of a body of
*See Eebellion Records, Vol. Ill, p. 60.
38 KANSAS IN THE SIXTIES
timber to the southeast, when Major Cloud started with
the Second on the double-quick to try to capture the
guns. Before he had covered half the distance, Green
limbered up and in a few minutes opened fire from the
southwest ; whereupon I was sent with three companies
over an open field to try to reach him in that direction.
At first he turned his guns on my battalion but his
shells went wild and no one was hurt. I moved on,
until within a quarter of a mile of his cavalry line and
guns ; but both quickly disappeared and in a very short
time bobbed up on another part of the field. Thus he
played hide-and-seek for about eight hours, shelling
the camp and village between drinks. Never once did
he permit our infantry to get within rifle shot of his
guns or mounted troops.
One of his shells by accident exploded near our line
and wounded Captain McClure in the foot, which was
doubtless the sum total of casualties on both sides.
During this sanguinary conflict, Southern chivalry was
stretched to the limit ; and to have prolonged the agony
would have been cruelty to Green's animals and
braves, who had been in the saddle for eight hours
without food or water.
So, viewing the situation from the standpoint of
the humanitarian, Colonels Williams and Blair, when
the four o 'clock train came along, put their troops and
baggage aboard, and rode over to Hudson. They found
the commanding general furiously out of humor be-
cause the Iowa and Kansas boys, on foot, could not
catch Green's command on horseback.
On September 6 the regiment took passage for St.
Joseph, and on the seventh arrived in Leavenworth,
somewhat disfigured but still in the ring. On the
twenty-first of September the regiment was ordered
by General Fremont to reinforce Colonel Mulligan at
Lexington, and immediately took passage on the
steamer West Wind for the scene of action, but arrived
too late to be of assistance.
OFF TO THE WAR 39
General Price had surrounded Lexington with six-
teen thousand men, so it was impossible to reach Mul-
ligan. He surrendered before our boat reached Wyan-
dotte. Mulligan should have been reinforced by Gen-
erals Pope, Sturgis, Jeff. C. Davis, and Jas. H. Lane,
all of whom were within supporting distance before
General Price laid siege to Lexington.
REGIMENT RETURNS TO FORT LEAVENWORTH AND IS MUS-
TERED OUT, OCTOBER 31, 1861
The Second Kansas remained at Wyandotte until
it was known that Price was not going to attack Kan-
sas City, and then returned to Fort Leavenworth to be
reorganized as a cavalry regiment.
On October 31, 1861, all the regiment was mustered
out, except Major W. F. Cloud and myself, who were
retained in the service by an order from the Secretary
of War for the purpose of organizing the Second Kan-
sas Cavalry.
From the fourteenth day of May to the thirty-first
day of October, 1861, the Second Kansas Infantry was
in the field, "We marched through Missouri, partici-
pated in four battles, and made a record of which every
officer and soldier in the regiment has a right to feel
proud.
CHAPTER IV
THE SECOND KANSAS CAVALBY
TKEACHERY OF U. S. OFFICERS IN TEXAS AND NEW MEXICO -
GENERAL SIBLEY's RETREAT AND REMARKABLE REPORT
— EXPEDITION TO NEW MEXICO PURSUIT OF NAVAJO
INDIANS RETURN TO FORT LARNED INDIAN COUNCIL.
DURING the Fall and Winter of 1861-62 Major
Cloud and I set about to recruit and organize the
Second Kansas Cavalry, as authorized and directed by
the War Department. On March 27, 1862, the organ-
ization was completed by the assignment of companies
and parts of companies, recruited for other regiments,
to the Second. When it was first organized, Robt. B.
Mitchell was appointed Colonel, but was soon there-
after promoted to the rank of a brigadier-general.*
The Second Kansas Cavalry was organized with
about seven hundred enlisted men, as brave, daring,
gallant, and true as ever wore spurs. On April 20 the
regiment broke camp near Kansas City and moved en
route for Fort Riley, halting at Lawrence and Topeka
a few days for dress parade and display, and finally
arrived at its destination on the fourth of May. About
the same time a number of other regiments arrived at
Fort Riley and reported to General Mitchell, who had
been ordered to New Mexico to look after the Confed-
erates operating in that Territory.
TREACHERY OF U. S. OFFICERS IN TEXAS AND NEW MEXICO
When the Civil War broke out, a large number of
the officers of the U. S. Army and Navy, being from the
Southern States, resigned to enter the Confederate
*See Appendix for roster of regimental officers.
40
SECOND KANSAS CAVALRY 41
service. Others, not satisfied to resign like gentlemen
and go their way, held on to their commissions, while
their uniforms were reeking with treason, for the pur-
pose of betraying loyal soldiers into the hands of the
enemy and robbing the Government of property and
munitions of war which had been entrusted to their
care. To this latter class belonged Major H. H. Sibley,
of the First Dragoons, and Major Isaac Lynde of the
Seventh Infantry. At the beginning of the war both
of these traitors held important commands in New
Mexico and Arizona.
Lynde, before he was dismissed from the service by
direction of President Lincoln, on November 25, 1861,
succeeded in turning over to an inferior force of Texas
Militia, Forts Fillmore and Craig, a vast amount of
Government stores ; arms, ammunition, artillery, trans-
portation, mules, cavalry horses, and five hundred
soldiers as prisoners.
Major Sibley, after doing all he could to demoralize
the army and injure the Government that had fed,
clothed, and educated him, finally resigned, went South,
and was appointed a Confederate brigadier-general.
On June 12 he wrote Colonel Loriiig from El Paso,
telling him that he had resigned and was going to San
Antonio to raise a brigade and then return to execute
movements " from this direction, which I am not at
liberty to disclose." In his letter to Loring, his deep
regret was that he had not marched his whole com-
mand of U. S. troops to San Antonio, because as he
says, " I am satisfied now of the disaffection of the
rank and file in New Mexico."
If the rank and file of the U. S. troops in New Mex-
ico were disaffected — in other words, disloyal — why
did he leave them and ride six hundred miles by stage
to San Antonio to raise a brigade of Texas troops to
bring back, and then move in a direction which he was
" not at liberty to disclose "? The truth is, the troops
in New Mexico were loyal to a man; and also the
42 KANSAS IN THE SIXTIES
officers, except those of higher rank and a few others
from the South who had been promised promotion in
the Eebel army.
So Major Sibley went alone in the stage to San
Antonio and thence to Richmond to get his promised
promotion. For his treason and the dirty work he had
done for the Confederacy, he was promptly appointed
a brigadier-general by Jefferson Davis and sent back
to New Mexico to capture the remainder of the forts,
troops, and Government property therein.
The Governor of Texas furnished him with three
small regiments of green troops for his perilous ex-
pedition. They were immediately started on their
broncos for El Paso, but how many arrived at their
destination does not appear in the Rebellion Records.
The major, now a general of note, returned to El Paso
by stage. He was busy planning his expedition up the
Rio Grande to Santa Fe and Fort Union while his
troops were en route. Finally they arrived ; and after
considerable delay, and much quarrelling, bickering,
and fault-finding among themselves, the motley crowd
moved. The rabble were armed with horse pistols,
flint-lock muskets, shotguns, squirrel rifles, and bowie-
knives. By the time they reached Albuquerque about
half the men had lost their broncos, and the other half
were barefooted. They looted all the stores and private
residences, in villages and the country on both sides
of the river, from El Paso to Albuquerque. They sub-
sisted almost entirely, while in New Mexico, on jack
rabbits and stolen Mexican sheep.
GENEKAL SIBLEY 's BETREAT AND EEMAKKABLE KEPOBT
From Albuquerque General Sibley started his
troops out under the command of one of his colonels to
capture Fort Union, but when they reached Apache
Canyon in the Glorietta Mountains, some forty miles
from Albuquerque, they were met by Colonel Slough
with Regular and Colorado troops and driven back
SECOND KANSAS CAVALRY 43
to Santa Fe, after losing their entire baggage-train,
ammunition, and supplies. These were captured in a
skirmish and burned by Major Chivington and his
command of Regulars and Colorado Volunteers. From
Santa Fe they retreated back to Albuquerque, where
General Sibley awaited their coming.
Meantime General Canby, commanding the Union
forces in New Mexico, was advancing on Albuquerque
with his troops. General Sibley and his Texas outfit
abandoned the remainder of their transportation,
crossed the Eio Grande by the light of tallow candles
and fled to the mountains west of the river. In his
subsequent report to the Adjutant General at Rich-
mond, he said he knew it would be impossible for Gen-
eral Canby to find him there. After wandering
through the dark canyons for ten days, with his men
almost naked and on the verge of starvation, General
Sibley finally struck a trail and eventually turned up
serenely at Fort Bliss, Texas.
His report of the expedition, as published in the
Rebellion Records, is a wonder to behold. His match-
less veterans, because of their superior courage and
skill, swept everything before them and left nary Fed-
eral to tell the tale. His valiant army was literally
smothered with supplies, — arms, ammunition, provi-
sions, and clothing, — which fell into their hands as if
by magic. His little army — parts of three Texas reg-
iments— according to Sibley 's report, would swallow
up whole brigades of our troops without salt or
vinegar.
When he began writing his report he was evidently
overjoyed by reason of his miraculous escape from the
mountains. But before he got through, the disasters
of his campaign and the clamor of his suffering sol-
diers loomed up before him and brought out some
wholesome truths. He admits the failure of his expedi-
tion and the loss of all his transportation, mules, and
wagons, ammunition, baggage, blankets, and supplies.
44 KANSAS IN THE SIXTIES
He admits having been checked in his advance and
driven into the mountains, where he and his troops
could not be found.
He says he was furnished only one thousand dol-
lars to meet the expenses of the expedition ; and again
he says the Territory of New Mexico is not worth a
quarter of the blood and treasure expended in its con-
quest. He does not admit having lost any men, and
if he expended only one thousand dollars of Confed-
erate money, his estimate of the value of New Mexico
to the Confederacy was certainly modest; especially
since, as he says, he had * * determined, as good policy,
to encourage private enterprise against the Navajo
and Apache Indians by legalizing the enslaving of
them."
In concluding this remarkable report, General Sib-
ley says:
As for the results of the campaign, I have only to say
that we have beaten the enemy in every encounter and
against large odds; that from being the worst armed, my
forces are now the best armed in the country. We reached
this point last Winter in rags and blankets. The army
is now well clad and well supplied in other respects. The
entire campaign has been prosecuted without a dollar in the
quartermaster's department, Captain Harrison not having
yet reached this place. But, sir, I cannot speak encour-
agingly for the future, my troops having manifested a
dogged, irreconcilable detestation of the counfry and the
people. They have endured much, suffered much, and cheer-
fully; but the prevailing discontent, backed up by the dis-
tinguished valor displayed on every field, entitles them to
marked consideration and indulgence.
These considerations, in connection with the scant sup-
ply of provisions and the disposition of our own citizens in
this section to depreciate our currency, may determine me,
without waiting for instruction, to move by slow marches
down the country, both for the purpose of remounting and
recruiting our thinned ranks.
If that rabble of ragged, uncivilized Texas militia
SECOND KANSAS CAVALRY 45
had beaten our troops in every encounter and were well
armed and supplied in every respect, why did they
permit our folks to capture their transportation, de-
stroy their ammunition, and drive them into the moun-
tains, where Sibley says, " the route was a difficult and
most hazardous one, both in respect to its practicabil-
ity and supply of water. Descents into and ascents out
of the deepest canyons, which a single horseman would
have sought for miles to avoid, were undertaken and
accomplished." Then why all this hazardous under-
taking, if they had " beaten the enemy in every en-
counter and against large odds ' ' I
The truth is they were drubbed to a frazzle; and
when they returned to Fort Bliss, they were in a state
of mutiny and determined to go home. They were not
only clamoring to go home, but they did go, and that
was the last seen or heard of General Sibley and his
invincible army during the Civil War.
Sibley and his invaders having been stripped of
their horses, mules, stolen property, transportation,
ammunition, bedding, and everything they had stolen or
brought with them, except the rags they wore and
the shotguns they carried, and then driven through
the wilds of the mountains and dark canyons to parts
unknown, General Mitchell's brigade, which had as-
sembled at Fort Riley in May en route to New Mexico
(except the Second Kansas Cavalry), was ordered to
Tennessee.
EXPEDITION TO NEW MEXICO
Waiting at Fort Riley to accompany Mitchell's ex-
pedition to New Mexico, were a large train of Gov-
ernment supplies for the troops and forts, and also
a number of army officers seeking to join their regi-
ments in that Territory. As an escort for this train
and the army officers, Major Fisk, with three com-
panies of the Second — A, D, and C — was detailed.
With his command the Major moved from Fort Riley
46 KANSAS IN THE SIXTIES
on the twenty-second day of May, and arrived at Fort
Union, New Mexico, June 22, 1862. I accompanied
the expedition, and when we reached the plains on the
old Santa Fe trail, we found the wild Indians on the
war-path. At Fort Larned the Major left one com-
pany— C, Captain Whittenhall — to help to garrison
the post.
When we reached Bent's Fort in Colorado we found
the Arkansas Eiver at the crossing barely fordable.
The snow in the mountains was melting, and the river
had swollen to a deep, swift current, which must be
forded then or not for a month, because the river was
slowly rising. Colonel Howe, of the Third Cavalry,
was one of the officers travelling with the expedition,
and having forded the treacherous river at that cross-
ing many times, Major Fisk permitted him to assume
command and give directions.
In crossing, several of the wagons went down to the
axle in quicksand and it took many mules to pull them
out; also some of the carriages not only went down
but turned over in the middle of the stream, making it
necessary for their occupants to swim for an island
farther down. Whether Colonel Howe's carriage
turned over, I do not recollect, but at any rate, by the
time the train and troops were all safely over, the
colonel was in a wild rage. After exhausting his vo-
cabulary, and making himself as ridiculous as when he
was placed in arrest for cowardice at the battle of Ash
Hollow, he concluded his remarks by placing Major
Fisk in arrest and informing me that I was in command.
The colonel was a noted character in the old army.
He had been court-martialled under almost every Ar-
ticle of War, but that made no difference with him. He
was deathly afraid of volunteers, and on one occasion
begged me not to allow them to roll his ambulance into
the river when he was asleep.
From the Arkansas crossing, the command moved
by way of Trinidad and across the Eaton Mountains
SECOND KANSAS CAVALRY 47
to Fort Union. Our line of march from Fort Riley was
over an untravelled road to the Arkansas River and
thence along the old Santa Fe Trail over the ground
where many prosperous towns, cities, fields, and farms
now stand. The long dreary journey was often en-
livened by the sight of vast herds of buffalo, deer, and
antelope, and by prowling wolves, scattered over the
limitless plains. Occasionally a band of hostile In-
dians would be seen in the distance, but we were not
disturbed by them on our outward journey.
PURSUIT OF NAVAJO INDIANS
The day we arrived at Fort Union at the end of
a continuous march of over seven hundred miles, the
Navajo Indians were at their old game over on the
Moro Eiver, killing Mexican sheep-herders and driv-
ing off the flocks. The next morning I took one hun-
dred men with ten days' rations, and went in pursuit.
Before I reached the field of action, the nomads had
finished their work and headed, with their captured
flocks, for the Moro Mountains. They had a part of a
day and one night the start of me, and I had tired men
and horses ; but we pushed on through the foothills as
rapidly as possible, until we overtook the flocks. On
our approach they had been abandoned by the Indians,
who were then fleeing for the canyons in mountains
piled up on top of mountains.
But once did we get sight of the noble scoundrels,
and then they were beyond the range of our guns. We
followed them for two days through a wild mountain-
ous region, in which nobody but a fugitive from justice
or a Navajo sheep-thief would think of living. On the
twenty-seventh of June we returned to Fort Union and
commenced recruiting our horses for the return trip
to Kansas.
While at Fort Union, a number of officers rode to
the top of an extinct volcano, which was quite interest-
ing. In view of the surroundings and the wretched
48 KANSAS IN THE SIXTIES
condition of the people, most of the officers seemed to
think that the volcano had ceased active operations a
few centuries too soon. On July 5 we folded our tents
and started on the return trip to Kansas and the seat
of war.
From Fort Union we marched to Trinidad, Colo-
rado, where we encountered a sand-storm, the like of
which no one of us had ever before witnessed. Under
a heavy gale the atmosphere for two hours was dark-
ened with light fine sand, so dense that the men and an-
imals breathed with difficulty. After the storm the sun
came out and we moved on down the Purgatory River
to the Arkansas and thence to Fort Lyon, uninter-
rupted by the elements, the wild beasts, or roving bands
of Indians.
RETURN TO FOKT LARKED
While we rested here, a tornado struck the camp,
levelled our tents to the ground, and swept the horses
and mules at full speed for miles over the prairie.
When the storm had passed, the horses were all
brought back and the command moved on down the val-
ley,— where beautiful cities, fields, and factories now
stand, — to find Fort Lamed threatened by the Chey-
enne and Arapahoe Indians. They were hungry and
demanded of the Post-Commandant, sugar, coffee,
flour, and bacon, not a pound of which did the commis-
sary have left at the fort. For a week or more about
three thousand of these savage barbarians had been
demanding and receiving supplies every day, until the
troops in the garrison were on short rations, and the
officers on the verge of a panic.
When we were within two days' march of Larned,
a messenger met us with a hurry-up despatch that the
fort was surrounded by hostile Indians and liable to
be attacked at any moment. Naturally we increased
our speed, and the last twenty-five miles were made
without a halt. On arriving at Larned we found the
SECOND KANSAS CAVALRY 49
plateau in front of the fort swarming with Indians.
But a glance at them revealed the fact that the squaws
and papooses were also there, and that was proof posi-
tive that they had no thought of attacking the garrison.
Instead of moving into the fort where there was
neither grass, rations nor forage, we went into camp in
a bend of the river, Pawnee Fork, between the fort and
the Indian camps. When our camp was established, I
stationed guards at suitable places with instructions
not to allow an Indian to come within. The tents were
soon up, the horses picketed out and the men busy pre-
paring supper. The Indians swarmed around on the
outside and having been in the habit of entering the
post at will and demanding food or anything else that
suited them, they thought they had the same right in
our camp.
The sentinels had no instructions to shoot but were
directed to load their carbines and keep the Indians
back. They crowded up, some three or four hundred
of them, closer and closer to the line and finally a bunch
of twenty-five or thirty bucks broke over and started
up between the rows of tents, grabbing the provisions
that our men were cooking. The soldiers flew for their
guns and I jerked my sabre and ran down to meet the
Indians. The first one I reached received a broadsider
across the side of his head and went down ; the second
likewise, and the third the same, but worse. By that
time the soldiers were in line with their guns and the
Indians were leaving camp faster than they came.
The three or four hundred on the outside, near camp,
were watching for results, and when the twenty-five
or thirty braves who made the break went back pell-
mell with their experience, and three of them with a
headache, they were blackguarded and ridiculed by
the Indians until they left camp.
That night two of my horses strayed across the
river and the Indians found and promptly took them to
their camp. The next morning I just as promptly took
50 KANSAS IN THE SIXTIES
fifty men, mounted, crossed the river and moved on
their works. I formed in front of the chief 's tent and
sent for him. He came out and I told him that two of
my horses were in his camp and I had come for them.
He looked around and said something in Indian, when
two of his warriors started away at a double-quick.
He then turned to me and said, " Ponies come. Me
good Injin. " In a few minutes the horses were brought
up and we took them to camp.
INDIAN COUNCIL
At twelve o'clock a powwow or so-called council
was to be held at the Post, and we, the newcomers, were
invited. At the appointed time the council assembled,
and we were all there. Soon the chiefs and warriors
in full dress came up, grunted, and squatted in a circle
under the shade of a big elm tree. They looked at the
newcomers with eyes askant, and began to smoke the
pipe of peace. They each took two whiffs and passed
the pipe on around the circle, and then to the Post-
Commandant, Captain Whittenhall, who had been ex-
ceedingly generous to them.
They again looked out from under their shaggy
brows at the new arrivals, who were sitting apart from
the circle. The Indians seemed ill at ease, but finally,
Little Eaven, the head chief of the Arapahoes, rose
from his awkward posture with the dignity of a Roman
Senator and, addressing Captain Whittenhall with his
eyes still on the newcomers, began the same speech he
had made to the captain each morning for a week.
He wanted more sugar, more coffee, more bacon,
more flour. When he had finished his harangue and
received an expression of approval from the other
chiefs and warriors, he subsided, and Tall Bull, a war-
chief of the Cheyennes, arose and with similar gestures
and emotions made substantially the same demands as
those made by Little Eaven. Other chiefs followed,
until they had worn the subject threadbare, and then
they all grunted in unison and paused for a reply.
SECOND KANSAS CAVALRY 51
Captain Whittenhall, to whom the Indians ad-
dressed their remarks, told them in a modest, if not
timid, sort of way, that he had already issued to them
all the provisions he had at the Post, and while he
would be glad to give them what they wanted, he could
not do so because he had nothing left to give. This
did not suit them, and they began to murmur among
themselves and rose to their feet with a defiant air, as
much as to say, " We will take what we want."
A wild Indian in those days had no respect for any-
thing but force, and our battalion had an abundance of
that on tap. When the chiefs assumed a threatening
attitude, the newcomers at once entered the council
and told them in plain, positive language what to do
and how to do it. They were informed that buffalo,
deer and antelope, in abundance, were grazing all over
the plains from the Arkansas to British America, and
that they must go, without standing on the order of
their going, and get what they wanted. That afternoon
they took down their tepees and the next day not an
Indian was to be seen in the vicinity of Fort Lamed.
This little episode having passed without the loss
of a brave on either side, our battalion moved on down
the old Santa Fe trail to the crossing of the Walnut,
near where the city of Great Bend now stands. Here
we stopped two days to muster, under an order from
the War Department, and also to secure a supply of
buffalo meat for the command.
Our stay at this camp was noted for wild rides and
hairbreadth escapes of officers and men while gunning
for game. The first to encounter danger was Captain
Moore, of the Second, who was unhorsed by a buffalo
cow while he was shooting at her wounded calf. Later
Lieutenant Cross was pursued by a wounded buffalo
and narrowly escaped the same fate. Lieutenant John-
son and Albert Payne were surrounded late in the af-
ternoon by a large herd and carried northward from
dark until daylight, when they found themselves thirty
miles from camp.
52 KANSAS IN THE SIXTIES
These were the tfrrilling events of our expedition
to Fort Union and back to the borders of civilization.
From our camp on the Walnut, which, for half a cen-
tury was known as the " Bloody Crossing," we
marched by way of Council Grove, Fort Eiley, Topeka,
and Lawrence to Fort Scott, Kansas, arriving there on
the twentieth day of September, 1862 ; having travelled
over two thousand miles from the day we broke camp
near Kansas City on the twentieth day of April.
CHAPTER V
OPERATIONS IN MISSOURI AND ARKANSAS
BATTLE OF NEWTONIA, OCTOBER 4, 1862 NIGHT ENGAGE-
MENT AT CROSS HOLLOWS, OCTOBER 18, 1862 BATTLE
OP OLD FORT WAYNE, OCTOBER 22, 1862 CAPTURE OF
BATTERY ENGAGEMENT AT BOONSBORO AND COVE
CREEK, NOVEMBER 8, 1862 — SKIRMISH WITH BUSH-
WHACKERS CAVALRY FIGHT AT CARTHAGE, NOVEMBER
20, 1862.
AT Fort Scott I was tendered the Lieutenant Col-
onelcy of the Twelfth Kansas Infantry, but pre-
ferring the cavalry, I remained in the Second ; and on
September 30, 1 was assigned to the command of a bat-
talion of that regiment. At two o 'clock on the morning
of October 1, I was ordered with my battalion to the
relief of Colonel Ritchie and Captain Russell of the
Second, who were surrounded by the Confederate Col-
onel, Stand Watie, with a large force, on Spring River,
and had been fighting for three days. At 3 P. M. I
reached Spring River, sixty miles distant, moved to
the front, and opened on Stand Watie at close range.
After I arrived, the battle continued about thirty min-
utes, when the enemy, consisting of Cherokee Indians
and Missouri bushwhackers, broke and fled from the
field in confusion.
Stand Watie subsequently averred that his men
were out of ammunition, and perhaps he was right;
because he and Ritchie had been skirmishing and fight-
ing for three days, and Ritchie had only a few rounds
left. After burying the dead and caring for the
wounded, we joined the regiment, which was en route
53
54 KANSAS IN THE SIXTIES
to reinforce General Salomon at Sarcoxie, Missouri,
who was threatened by a superior force at Newtonia.
BATTLE OF NEWTONIA, OCTOBER 4, 1862
On March 6, 7, and 8, the battle of Pea Eidge was
fought and won by General S. E. Curtis, commanding
the Union forces. Soon thereafter the bulk of his
troops was transferred to the east of the Mississippi,
leaving Generals Schofield, Blunt, and Herron with in-
experienced troops, to take care of Missouri and the
country west of the Mississippi. Opposed to them were
the Confederate generals, Marmaduke, Shelby, Hind-
man, and others, with troops equally untrained and
less steady in action.
Blunt concentrated his division at Fort Scott, which
consisted of the Second, Sixth, and Ninth Kansas Cav-
alry; the Tenth, Eleventh, Twelfth, and Thirteenth
Kansas Infantry; the Third Wisconsin Cavalry, and
Ninth Wisconsin Infantry; the Eighteenth Iowa In-
fantry; the First Kansas and Second Indiana bat-
teries — about six thousand men all told.
General Blunt moved with his division from Fort
Scott on the first day of October, 1862, and on the
fourth at Newtonia, in Southwest Missouri, struck
Marmaduke and Shelby, who, after an artillery duel of
an hour, retreated in hot haste southward, with my bat-
talion of the Second Kansas and a section of Captain
Eabb's Second Indiana battery hanging heavily on
their flank and rear. We followed them until dark,
when we gave up the chase and rejoined the command.
The next day General Blunt moved forward to
Keetsville, Missouri, and on the sixteenth the Second
moved forward and camped on the old battlefield of
Pea Eidge. The Second, under the command of Lieu-
tenant-Colonel Bassett, was ordered forward from Pea
Eidge to Cross Hollows, where the enemy was en-
camped and supposed to be entrenched.
OPERATIONS IN MISSOURI 55
NIGHT ENGAGEMENT AT CROSS HOLLOWS, OCTOBER 18, 1862
On the afternoon of the eighteenth, we encountered
a scouting party of the enemy in the timber, and drove
them back on their main force at Cross Hollows. Here
we found the enemy in position ; protected on all sides
by the natural formation of the hills and hollows.
Fortunately, we reached his lines and took in the situa-
tion before dark ; otherwise, we might have been drawn
into a trap.
The real battle opened at the entrance to the Hol-
lows about sunset; after fighting for an hour or so,
the Second advanced over and down rugged declivities
into the open smooth ground, and then drove the enemy
out through the cut roads to the hills on the south
side. Here the fighting continued until about twelve
o'clock, when the enemy retreated and left the field in
our possession.
Having accomplished the purpose of the raid, we
rejoined Blunt 's command at Pea Eidge on the even-
ing of October 20, and after halting for an hour the
Second was directed to move in advance of the division
on the road to Bentonville, twenty-five miles distant.
About sunrise the next morning we went into camp in
an apple orchard near that town. At 6 P. M. October
21, we again took the road leading to Maysville, where
General Cooper with a large force of the enemy, six
thousand men, was encamped.
At one o'clock on the morning of October 22, and
when within eight miles of Maysville, General Blunt
ordered a halt for an hour to allow the infantry and
artillery to close up. At 2 A. M. he ordered an ad-
vance and at the same time ordered that no bugles be
sounded. When we moved, I took the precaution to
send the Adjutant back to the rear of the Second to
see that the companies were all moving.
On approaching Maysville just before the break of
day, we saw the enemy's picket fires burning brightly,
56 KANSAS IN THE SIXTIES
which showed that he was in the vicinity. General
Blunt, being with us at the front, ordered a halt and
sent a staff officer back to see if the command was
closed up, and soon the officer returned with the in-
formation that no troops were present except the Sec-
ond. "Whereupon the brigade commander and field
officer of the day dashed back at full speed to see what
had become of the rest of the troops.
The General thought they had taken the wrong road
in the darkness of the night; but I suggested to him
that the regimental commander next in rear of the Sec-
ond was probably asleep when we moved at two o'clock,
and that they were still there. This proved to be true.
Daylight was then approaching, and the enemy 's pick-
ets were less than half a mile distant ; but as yet their
camp had not been located. We were in suspense,
standing there with one regiment on the open prairie,
in full view of the enemy's pickets, with the certainty
of a large force in our front, and the uncertainty of
what had become of our army.
BATTLE OF OLD FORT WAYNE, OCTOBER 22, 1862
For dash, determination, and reckless daring on the
part of the Second Kansas Cavalry, the battle of Old
Fort Wayne and its approaches stands without a rival.
For two nights previous to the morning of the battle,
the regiment had led the advance and been in the sad-
dle continuously, without an hour's sleep. At daylight
in the morning, when it was discovered that by an in-
excusable blunder the whole army, except the Second,
had been left asleep eight miles in the rear, General
Blunt ordered me to move forward with my battalion
and drive in the Eebel pickets, saying that he would as-
certain the position of the enemy and skirmish with
them until the remainder of his division reached the
field.
At the same time he directed Colonel Bassett to
send two other companies of the Second around to ap-
proach the village of Maysville in our immediate front,
OPERATIONS IN MISSOURI 57
by other roads. I moved forward, scattered the first
picket and captured the village, with a few stragglers
from the Rebel camp. In a few minutes General Blunt
and the remainder of the Second came in, and learning
that the Rebel camp was four miles to the southwest, he
ordered the whole regiment to move in that direction.
On leaving the village my battalion was in the ad-
vance; and soon General Blunt reached the front and
said to me, " Let 's go forward and have some fun
with their next picket-post." We started first at a
steady gallop and in a few minutes captured a colored
fellow who had left the Rebel command that morning
when all were excited. He told us that General Cooper
was in command, and that he was forming his line of
battle at the lower end of the prairie over which we
were then riding. He also told us that Cooper had a
" powerful " army, and a mounted picket on the road
about a mile ahead of us.
Then Sergeant Cooper, with three men of the Gen-
eral 's bodyguard, having overtaken us, we six men and
an unarmed " contraband " let our horses move at a
lively gait. In a few minutes we struck the Rebel
picket in the road — about fifteen mounted men —
ready to move. There were seven of us, counting the
darkey, and the Second by this time was a mile back.
Nevertheless we were out for a lark, and that was not
the time nor the place to turn in ; so away we went on
a hot trail, gaining every minute on the Knights of
Chivalry.
Blunt and I were both mounted on fleet, blooded
horses of the very best, but they could not overtake the
Arkansas, Texas, and Choctaw bronchos, which seemed
to have been selected and trained for that special occa-
sion. But that picket was not so wild and woolly as we
had reckoned. All of a sudden they whirled around a
small cluster of trees and bushes out on the prairie,
and ran into the arms of a grand guard of about sixty
mounted men in battle array.
Blunt and I checked our horses as quickly as possi-
58 KANSAS IN THE SIXTIES
ble, but within close range. Sergeant Cooper's horse
carried him straight to the enemy, and he surrendered.
The other three members of the bodyguard and our
colored prisoner formed in line in our rear, and there
we stood, six against sixty, with our support, the Sec-
ond Kansas, more than a mile back.
They looked at us, and we looked at them, resolved
in our own minds that if they didn't — we wouldn't.
They were not quite satisfied to let well-enough alone,
and their Captain rode out in front of his line and fired
one shot which went over our heads. I had a navy
pistol in my hand and instantly replied with two shots
and probably missed the Captain. Those were the only
shots fired, and then they wheeled into column and
rode off the field, to our great satisfaction. We were
then within a mile of Cooper's line of battle, which
was hid from view by a skirt of timber.
In a few minutes the Second came up and I was or-
dered to take my battalion and skirmish through the
timber to the left, while General Blunt took Stover's
howitzers and the remainder of the Second, and moved
rapidly around the timber and out on to the open field,
in full view of the enemy's position. I was immediately
ordered to the front, and when I arrived, I found the
other companies of the regiment hotly engaged. Gen-
eral Cooper had formed his line of battle across the
field at the south end of the prairie, in front of a heavy
body of timber, with both his flanks protected, and his
artillery on a slight elevation near the centre.
General Blunt and Colonel Bassett in forming our
line had stationed Stover 's howitzers on the right, pro-
tected by company A, Lieutenant Johnson ; and on the
left were companies C, Sergeant Barker; I, Captain
Ayers; F, Lieutenant Lee; and G, Lieutenant Cos-
grove, leaving a wide open space between the two
wings.
Stover opened the battle with his guns, and in-
stantly our right and left were engaged. The Rebel
OPERATIONS IN MISSOURI 59
battery — four guns — was turned on Stover, and shell
and canister were flying in every direction when I
reached the field. I came up with my battalion at a
gallop in front of the Rebel centre and directly in
front of the Rebel battery, and was directed to dis-
mount, move forward, and occupy the open field be-
tween our two flanks. While we were dismounting, the
Rebel battery was turned on my battalion, but it seemed
to be shooting at the stars. The shells flew high over
our heads. Under their artillery fire and in the face
of musketry, I advanced to close range and opened fire.
My battalion was formed in line from right to left,
as follows:
Company H, Lieutenant Ballard commanding.
Company B, Captain Hopkins commanding.
Company D, Lieutenant Moore commanding.
Company K, Captain Russell commanding.
Company E, Captain Gardner commanding.
At first we fired volleys, but pretty soon I gave the
order, " Fire at will, aim low, and give 'em hell! '
The Rebel infantry overshot all the time, and their ar-
tillery for quite a while ; but finally they began to lower
their cannon, and the shells came closer and closer to
our heads as they passed over us with that peculiar
warning well remembered by old soldiers. Finally
they got the range, and their shells began to crash
through the line and explode among our horses, held
by every fourth man in our rear.
CAPTUBE OF BATTEEY
This left us but one of two things to do, — either
charge and capture the battery, or retreat. Either was
hazardous. In our front was a line of infantry — three
to our one — and a battery which would probably use
canister if we advanced; and in our rear nothing but
the open prairie upon which to fall back. As yet it was
not known what had become of our infantry, artillery,
and the rest of our cavalry. They were not in sight,
60 KANSAS IN THE SIXTIES
and I did not know where they were. General Blunt
was on another part of the field, and I had no time to
communicate with him. So it was up to me to act, and
act quickly.
I had unwavering confidence in every officer and
soldier in the battalion. Many of them had been with
me at the battle of Wilson's Creek and other engage-
ments, so the question of courage was not considered
for a moment. The question in my mind was, Can we
afford to take the chances? While considering it
briefly, I rode over to where Captain Eussell was stand-
ing in the rear of his company, and said to him, " We
have got to take that battery, else we are gone to hell. ' '
The Captain replied, " All right; if you say so, we '11
try it. ' ' That was sufficient, and I immediately ordered
the bugler to sound the advance.
The line was just a little bit slow in starting, be-
cause it looked as though we were going into the jaws
of death. To add zest to the movement, Lieutenant
Horace L. Moore stepped to the front of his company
and, whirling his sword above his head, rang out the
command, " Forward, D Company! " From that mo-
ment the line advanced with a quickstep to and over a
rail fence within fifty yards of the Rebel battery, which
was belching shell in our faces. Their last shot struck
the panel on which Captain Gardner and some of his
men were crossing and sent them unhurt high in the
air. Over the fence the battalion levelled one volley at
the battery and the Eebel line of support, and then
dashed forward, driving everything, except the bat-
tery, before them.
Horses enough had been shot to hold the battery
where it was. The Eebel infantry had fallen back into
the timber, from which they were making a desperate
effort to recapture the battery and especially the
horses attached to one of the caissons, which, when
abandoned by the artillerymen, had run down into the
lower corner of the field and become entangled in a
cluster of small bushes.
OPERATIONS IN MISSOURI 61
When we had captured the battery, I ordered Cap-
tain Hopkins to turn the guns on the enemy and shell
the woods in which they had taken shelter ; but he could
not do so for want of caps. I then ordered Lieutenant
Moore to take his company and move the battery to the
rear. About the same time I started an orderly to in-
form General Blunt of what we had accomplished.
After all this had been done, some one of my battalion
called attention to our troops that had been left behind
the night before and were now coming at a run over the
prairie, as far back as we could see. Captain Rabb of
the Second Indiana battery was leading the host.
General Blunt and staff were back on the prairie,
thinking that my battalion had been captured, because
it was hid from view. My messenger had not yet
reached him, and Lieutenant Moore was moving out
toward him, when Captain Rabb dashed up and called
his attention to the Rebel battery that was moving on
his works. The General ordered Rabb to go into bat-
tery and use canister. Just then my messenger ar-
rived and told the General that we had captured the
Rebel battery and driven the enemy back into the
woods. Rabb then came on to the front and fired a few
shells in the direction of the retreating Rebels. That
closed the battle of Old Fort Wayne, in so far as the
fighting was concerned. It was reported that the en-
emy retreated on a run until they reached Fort Gibson,
sixty miles away.
While my battalion was thus engaged, the remain-
der of the never-flinching Second were equally hard-
pressed on both flanks. But they stood firm, and
prevented the enemy from closing around to our rear
and cutting us off when we advanced on the Rebel cen-
tre. Not only that, but they captured the horses of a
dismounted Rebel regiment, and these were subse-
quently appropriated by one of our Indian regiments,
which came up after the fighting was over and while
the Second was pursuing the enemy. On the twenty-
seventh the guns we captured were turned over to
62 KANSAS IN THE SIXTIES
Captain Hopkins and his company, and were thereafter
known as Hopkins 's battery.
The division remained in the vicinity of old Fort
Wayne until November 6, and then moved to Prairie
Creek, eight miles south of Bentonville.
ENGAGEMENT AT BOONSBOBO AND COVE CBEEK, NOVEMBER
8, 1862
On the seventh of November, Colonel Cloud and
myself, under orders from General Blunt, went out on
an expedition southward with the Second Kansas Cav-
alry and Stover's howitzers. On the morning of the
ninth we struck Colonel Emmet McDonald, Confed-
erate Provost-Marshal of Missouri and Arkansas, at
Boonsboro, and, after a sharp engagement of two
hours, broke his line and started his forces on the re-
treat toward Cove Creek and the Boston Mountains.
McDonald's command was composed of Confed-
erate troops from Missouri and Arkansas, with a train
of five baggage wagons which had been started south
before we arrived. Having notice of our coming, Mc-
Donald had formed his line on a slight elevation in a
cluster of trees with a ravine in his front. We moved
up, formed, and opened at long range, but the distance
was so far that our fire did little damage. Finally we
worked our way across and around the ravine and ad-
vanced and opened fire at close range.
As nearly as we could estimate, the forces were
about equal in numbers. Every man on either side was
at his best and ready to do or die. The colonels com-
manding — Cloud and McDonald — were well matched ;
both were nervous, vain, courageous, and wore long
hair. McDonald was a dashing Hibernian, taught
from childhood to eat food from the point of the sword.
Cloud was a Knight of the Old Guard, no less dashing
and eager for military glory. But in many ways the
contest was unequal. Cloud had trained soldiers who
knew not the meaning of the word " retreat." Me-
OPERATIONS IN MISSOURI 63
Donald had a crowd of irregular, indefinite, uncertain
Missouri and Arkansas politicians who depended
largely upon their mouths and lungs for success. The
Second replied to their noisy racket with bullets which
soon had a soothing effect.
After skirmishing and fighting for about two hours,
the enemy's line began to waver and pretty soon fell
back to a new position. From this they were readily
dislodged, and then driven steadily over the hills to
Cove Creek, fiVe miles distant, whe(re retreat was
turned into a rout, and for twenty miles down the val-
ley it was a race for dear life. We soon overtook and
captured their train, baggage, and supplies. We also
captured a number of prisoners whose horses had
failed them; and finally we captured their flag, and
scattered what was left among the hills in all
directions.
From Cove Creek we moved by the wire road to
Fayetteville, Arkansas; and thence by way of Elm
Springs back to Prairie Creek, whence we had started.
On arriving at camp we found the division on half ra-
tions, and General Blunt considerably worried about
a supply train of three hundred wagons which had
started from Fort Scott ten days previous. The mil-
itary road from our camp to Fort Scott, one hundred
and twenty-five miles, was beset with Missouri bush-
whackers and Rebel Indian renegades, and General
Blunt was solicitous lest the train, which was overdue,
might have been captured.
SKIBMISH WITH BUSHWHACKERS
To find the train and bring it to camp, I was di-
rected to take my battalion and a detachment of In-
dian troops under Lieutenant Manning, and move north
in the direction of Fort Scott. On the morning of the
seventeenth we started and marched by way of Elk
River to Pineville, Missouri.
In the afternoon we struck a band of bushwhackers
64 KANSAS IN THE SIXTIES
in the hills of McDonald County, who fancied they
could impede our progress. They had stationed their
sharp-shooters in a double-log farm-house and behind
a barn filled with hay ; and also formed an ambuscade
in a corn-field near-by. As our advance passed, the
sharp-shooters fired, and wounded one of our men. I
immediately threw a squadron of the Second forward
into line and opened fire on the house, barn, and every-
thing in sight.
At the same tune Lieutenant Manning swung his
battalion around the house and moved forward to take
care of the gentlemen in the corn-field. A few volleys
brought a cadaverous clay-eater out of the house pro-
claiming his loyalty to the Union, the invariable plea
of the bushwhacker when caught red-handed. He was
promptly made a prisoner, and the firing went mer-
rily on.
In some way the barn and hay took fire and soon
the flames leaped to the dwelling-house, and from there
to a number of wheat stacks near by. Then the bush-
whackers climbed out and saved themselves as best
they could. Some of them ran within range of Man-
ning's guns, and others fled for their holes in the near-
by rugged hills. The place was a rendezvous for
thieves and cut-throats, and the wheat, corn, and hay
had been gathered and cribbed and stacked there for
their winter supply.
From here we moved to Pineville, and camped for
the night. The next day we reached Neosho late in the
afternoon. When within a mile of town, I ordered
Lieutenant Moore, with the advance guard, to dash
forward and pick up such of the enemy as he might
find lying around loose. Moore, true as the needle to
the pole, moved rapidly down the road and into town
so quickly that the Rebel ladies had not time to con-
ceal the few bushwhackers or Confederates who were
prowling about.
Most of them, however, hearing the racket incident
OPERATIONS IN MISSOURI g5
to a cavalry company moving at full speed, had time to
mount their horses and get away, — in fact all of them,
if I remember correctly, except one belated captain
who was running at full speed down one of the princi-
pal streets, with Lieutenant Moore on a fleet horse not
twenty paces in his rear. Moore could have disabled
or killed him easily, but preferred to capture him. The
captain's fiancee, a most beautiful little Rebel girl,
standing on the sidewalk and seeing her gallant cap-
tain in danger of being captured, ran out and threw
herself immediately in front of Moore's horse and
brought him to a halt; and that gave the Rebel cap-
tain time to make good his escape. It has always been
a question in my mind whether it was the danger of
running over the young lady or her charming beauty
that brought the Lieutenant so suddenly to a halt.
From Neosho we moved on to Carthage and there
could hear only wild rumors concerning our train. One
report was that it had been captured by Stand Watie
and the bushwhackers over on the military road. An-
other was that it had been attacked and driven by way
of Lamar to Springfield, Missouri. So I called a halt
at Carthage and sent Lieutenant Manning north to the
Lamar Road, and Lieutenant Moore west to the mili-
tary road, and awaited their return.
CAVALRY FIGHT AT CARTHAGE, NOVEMBER 20, 1862
While encamped in the old court-house square at
Carthage about one o'clock on the morning of Novem-
ber 20, the notorious bushwhacker, Tom Livingston,
attacked our picket of seven men a mile from camp,
with about one hundred men. The picket fired one
volley and immediately started at full speed for camp.
I had previously instructed them if attacked to come
in at the southwest corner of the public square, where
I would meet them.
My troops were sleeping on their arms and as soon
as the pickets fired, I moved eighty men to the point
66 KANSAS IN THE SIXTIES
designated and formed them in line across the street.
The enemy followed our pickets at full speed and both
parties were firing as they came. I reserved the fire
from my line until our men passed, and then levelled a
volley at the bunch of bushwhackers, who had been
brought to a halt suddenly within a few paces of our
line. While they were turning their horses and try-
ing to get away, we gave them another volley which
emptied a number of saddles. How many were killed
and wounded we had no means of knowing, but four of
their men, too badly wounded to be removed, were left
in our hands.
During the night the scouting parties returned, and
Lieutenant Moore reported that he had found the lost
train in camp on Spring Eiver twenty miles west of
Carthage. They had been lying idle for ten days, while
the army at the front was short of rations. The next
morning Lieutenant Manning having returned from
Lamar, I moved west and, arriving at the train in the
evening, assumed command and issued the order 6f
march for six o'clock the next morning.
In conversation with Captain Conkey of the Third
Wisconsin Cavalry, who had commanded the escort
for the train from Fort Scott to Spring River, I found
that on arriving there, Captain Morton, a quarter-
master, had assumed command and held the train in
camp for ten days. He was living in regal style — a la
Schah de Perse — and did not concern himself about
his imaginary subjects, the army at the front.
When six o 'clock, the hour of march, came the next
morning, the train-mules had not been hitched to the
wagons, Morton's tents were still standing, his outfit
asleep, and their breakfast in embryo. Captain Gard-
ner, the officer of the day, a real soldier, rode over,
called him up, and asked if he did not receive the order
of march the night before. " Yes," he said, " but I
want it understood right now that I am in command of
this train, and it will not move until I say the word."
OPERATIONS IN MISSOURI 67
I was sitting on my horse some distance away, wait-
ing to hear the cause of delay, when Captain Gardner
rode up and told me. We rode over to Morton's tent,
and called him out. I asked him about what was said
to Captain Gardner.
" Yes," he said, " I claim to be in — "
" That 's enough, I said, " and if I hear another
word from you about commanding this train, I will
tie you behind a wagon from here to the camp of the
division. ' ' Then I ordered Gardner to move the train,
and if Morton and his outfit were not in line when the
rear-guard moved, to leave them back to take care of
themselves.
Morton's tents went down as if by magic and his
baggage-wagon and other paraphernalia dropped in
the rear just in time to save themselves. Thereafter,
from this camp to the army in Arkansas, we had no
further trouble. I moved the train at the rate of twenty-
five miles per day, over a rough road, without the loss
of a man, mule, or wagon.
In a skirmish with the notorious Fay Price of
Southwest Missouri, I had one man slightly wounded,
but Price and his bushwhackers paid dearly for it.
They had secreted themselves in a cluster of trees and
bushes near the road, and when the bulk of the train
and troops had passd, they opened fire on what they
supposed to be our rear guard. But it so happened
that the gallant Captain Coleman with his company of
the Ninth Kansas Cavalry was yet back, and hearing
the firing he made a dash for an open field on their rear.
Finding themselves almost surrounded, they broke and
tried to make their escape, but Coleman was too quick
for them. He captured Price and a number of prison-
ers, some of whom had been wounded and their horses
shot from under them.
On November 26 we reached the army in Western
Arkansas and received a hearty welcome from five
thousand men who were out of rations.
CHAPTER VI
CAMPAIGN IN ARKANSAS
BATTLE OF CANE HILL BATTLE OF THE BOSTON MOUN-
TAINS, DECEMBER 6, 1862 BATTLE OF PRAIRIE GROVE,
DECEMBER 7, 1862 ARMISTICE REQUESTED BY GENERAL
HINDMAN REAL SOLDIERS AND POLITICAL SOLDIERS.
ON the twenty-seventh of November the Second
moved with General Blunt 's division to Rhea's
Mills, seven miles north of Cane Hill, where the Con-
federate general Marmaduke and Shelby were stationed
with about five thousand troops. At two o 'clock on the
morning of the twenty-eighth, General Blunt with four
thousand of his division moved on the road to Marma-
duke 's camp. The night was dark, and the road almost
impassable. The General's order of march for his cav-
alry and artillery was ill conceived, and his plan of
battle was worse. He knew nothing of the enemy's
actual position, and went blundering along with his
artillery virtually unsupported, in the advance, and
his cavalry and infantry all mixed up in the rear, and
scattered and straggling back for miles along a muddy
road.
Marmaduke had selected his own battle-ground and
formed his line extending northward from College Hill.
In front of his artillery was a deep hollow with precip-
itous hill-sides.
BATTLE OF CANE HILL
Blunt moved up a steep hill and out in front of
Marmaduke 's line with the Second Indiana battery un-
der Captain Rabb, supported by Major Fisk with three
68
CAMPAIGN IN KANSAS 69
companies of the Second Kansas Cavalry, while the
remainder of his troops were from one to three miles
back. He ordered Rabb to go into battery on a hill-
side and open on the enemy. While Rabb was trying
to get his guns in position, the enemy opened on him,
and having the range, knocked his guns, horses, and
men around promiscuously. Major Fisk was wounded,
and his battalion, with Rabb's, had to fall back to a
new position. Had Marmaduke charged at that par-
ticular time, the day would have been lost before the
battle began, because Blunt had no troops within sup-
porting distance. The Eleventh Kansas was the near-
est, and it was a mile in the rear, halted and waiting
for ihe men to close up. Colonel Bassett and I, with
six companies of the Second and Stover's guns, were
in the rear of the Eleventh, and the rest of the troops
were still in our rear. Colonel Cloud and I had been
over that road about two weeks before, and knew the
danger of the position. When Blunt went forward
with Rabb's battery and Fisk's battalion, which was
no support as against five thousand men, I told Col-
onels Ewing and Bassett that Blunt would strike the
enemy in less than ten minutes, and urged them to move
forward to his support. But they did not move until
the Rebel batteries opened fire, when a staff officer
came dashing back with orders for the Second Kansas
to the front.
I took the six companies we had, passed the Elev-
enth, and reached the field in a few minutes. On arriv-
ing General Blunt directed me to leave one company
with him, and take the other five and move rapidly to
the enemy's left and, if possible, roll up his flank. In
executing this order, my movements were accelerated
by reason of a Rebel battery which played on my bat-
talion until we were beyond their reach.
Marmaduke 's line — cavalry, in single rank — ex-
tended northward from College Hill for over a mile
without any protection for his flank. I moved down in
70 KANSAS IN THE SIXTIES
column of fours at a gallop, wheeled into line, sounded
the charge and shattered their left into fragments. We
rolled up their flank for more than a quarter of a mile,
and until checked by a Eebel battery, which, in turn,
was speedily silenced by Hopkins 's battery, which had
been sent to my support.
Meantime the remainder of our troops had reached
the field and formed in the centre and on the left, with
Rabb's battery in a commanding position, from which
he was raining shot and shell on the Rebel battery that
had played him a dance early in the morning. This
battery had no superior on either side in the Civil
War; and Captain Rabb in action was all that could
be desired.
One by one Marmaduke's guns on his right ceased
firing, and in his centre it was but a faint echo and
shadow of the bravado and dazzling scenes of the early
morning. The defiant Rebel yell had dwindled down
to a sickly whimper and the plumed commanders
seemed to be seeking places of safety. The Second
Kansas and Hopkins 's battery were still pounding
them on the left, and our infantry was not idle in the
centre.
With both flanks rolled up and his centre steadily
yielding ground, Marmaduke, thinking no doubt that
discretion was the better part of valor, ordered a re-
treat. His troops, greatly demoralized, fell back in a
southerly direction to a body of timber about a half-
mile from the battlefield, where he and his officers
halted long enough for most of his men to find their
regiments. While they were thus collecting their men,
the Second Kansas and Hopkins 's battery moved
around on a hill west of them and renewed the fight;
they again started on the retreat, with the Second on
their flank and in their rear, until they reached a spur
of the Boston Mountains, five miles distant, over which
the road ran.
On this spur of the mountains, which was difficult
CAMPAIGN IN KANSAS 71
of ascent, Marmaduke halted and formed a part of his
troops in line to check our advance. He stationed his
artillery so as to rake the road, which made it neces-
sary for me to halt and wait for reinforcements. In a
short time General Blunt arrived with the infantry,
when we took the hill by storm, and again started the
Rebels on a trot with the Second at their heels.
I held the advance for two miles farther and until
the Second was running short of ammunition, when
Colonel Jewell and Major Campbell, with the Sixth
Kansas Cavalry, came up about 4:30 P. M. and asked
me to let them take the advance. Thfe Second having
been in the saddle continuously for one day and night
before the battle began that morning, I was more than
pleased to see the Sixth go to the front. We were then
approaching Cove Creek Valley with the enemy in our
immediate front, contesting every available point.
The Sixth Kansas was a good regiment, well armed
and equipped, and Jewell and Campbell were first-
class officers. "When I sounded the recall, Jewell threw
his regiment forward into line and pressed the ene-
my 's rear-guard until they were well out in the valley.
The head of Marmaduke 's retreating forces was by
this time probably three or four miles in advance. The
valley was narrow, and the winding of the creek back
and forth across the road afforded many opportunities
for a skilful officer, like Joe Shelby, to form ambus-
cades and check his pursuers; and that is just what
he did.
Colonel Jewell, after reaching the valley with a
fresh regiment, got tired of being held back by what
seemed to be a light rear-guard, and made up his mind,
no doubt, to drive it in on the main force. Meantime
Marmaduke was tired of being pursued, and ready to
do anything that would give him relief. Finding a
suitable place to ambush our advance, he stationed a
force behind some bushes along the bank of the creek,
which at that place ran parallel with the road for a
72 KANSAS IN THE SIXTIES
short distance; and he placed a few men in the road
farther along. When Colonel Jewell saw the decoy
men in the road, as I was informed, he ordered a
charge; and as he and his men were passing the am-
buscade, they received a volley, which killed Jewell
and a number of his men, and wounded most of the
others in his charging party ; perhaps twenty in all.
This was the closing scene of the battle of Cane
Hill, which began awkwardly, was fought and won gal-
lantly, and ended unfortunately. The Second Kansas
bivouacked in Cove Creek Valley where the battle
ended, and the next day returned to Cane Hill and
went into camp.
BATTLE OP THE BOSTON MOUNTAINS, DECEMBER 6, 1862
On the third of December, five days after the battle
of Cane Hill, I was sent down the Cove Creek Road in
the direction of Van Buren with a battalion of the
Second Kansas to reconnoitre the country and ascer-
tain, if possible, the whereabouts of the Confederate
forces of Generals Hindman and Marmaduke, who
were reported as advancing to attack General Blunt
at Cane Hill. I reached Lee 's Creek, twenty-five miles
distant, late in the afternoon and met a scouting party
of the enemy, which after a slight skirmish retreated
southward on the Van Buren Road. Returning to Cane
Hill, I reported to General Blunt at one o'clock that
night.
The next day Captain Russell was sent with a bat-
talion of the Second over the same road for a like pur-
pose. He met the enemy's advance or outpost near
Lee's Creek and skirmished with them until dark, try-
ing to ascertain if the enemy was there in force. Dur-
ing the night he returned to camp and reported his
discoveries to General Blunt.
On Friday morning, December 5, having been or-
dered by General Blunt, in person, to take a battalion
of the Second and move down the Cove Creek Road
CAMPAIGN IN KANSAS 73
until checked by a superior force, and then reconnoitre
until I learned to a certainty the strength and move-
ments of the enemy, I left camp at daylight with se-
lected officers and troops, and moved as directed.
About noon we met the enemy's advance guard
some ten miles below where we entered the valley, and
advanced cautiously, as the guard slowly retreated,
until we sighted a heavy body of cavalry moving at a
steady gait. From their action I knew it was the ad-
vance of Hindman's army. As they advanced, I fell
back slowly, trying to determine their numbers. The
winding road afforded a good opportunity for this;
and as nearly as I could estimate, they had about a
thousand men. Beyond them we could dimly see the
head of the main column, but every movement of their
advance showed that an army was behind them.
Finally they halted, dismounted, and were apparently
preparing to go into camp. Then we moved back about
four miles to our picket post, which I strengthened
with two additional companies of cavalry, — Captains
Gardner and Mathews, — and then dismounted the bat-
talion to await developments.
At dark I sent Lieutenant Moore with twenty men
down the mountain road parallel with and overlooking
the valley, in which the enemy was encamped. After
advancing six or seven miles and reaching a viewpoint
opposite the centre of the enemy's camp, he returned
and reported camp-fires burning brightly up and down
the valley as far as he could see. That was evidence
conclusive, proof positive, that Hindman was there
with a large army. After telling Captain Gardner that
he would be attacked at daylight, and promising to
have reinforcements there before that time, I returned
to camp and reported to General Blunt at one o'clock
in the morning of December 6.
Having previously become satisfied that Generals
Hindman and Marmaduke had united their forces and
were moving against him with at least twenty thou-
74 KANSAS IN THE SIXTIES
sand men, General Blunt advised General Curtis, at
St. Louis, of the fact, and asked for reinforcements.
General Curtis immediately directed General Herron,
who was encamped near Springfield, Missouri, to move
with two divisions by forced marches to Blunt 's sup-
port. Herron moved promptly and kept Blunt ad-
vised of his progress.
With Hindman 's army only ten miles distant, Blunt
should have fallen back on the Fayetteville road until
he met Herron; but he was stubborn and would not
yield. He thought he could hold Hindman in check
until Herron arrived, and then fight the battle near
Cane Hill. I told him it was risky ; that our cavalry-
post in Cove Creek Valley would be driven in at day-
light, unless strongly reinforced, and that would open
the way for Hindman to attack him before Herron
came up.
I told him that I had promised Captain Gardner, in
charge of the picket-post, that he should be reinforced
during the night unless the division fell back to meet
Herron. I told him also that nothing short of a regi-
ment could hold that post any length of time against
Hindman 's advance. The General, after considering
the situation a few minutes, sent an order by me to
Colonel Cloud to have the post reinforced with one
hundred men and two howitzers before daylight. I
delivered the order at two o'clock in the morning, and
Cloud immediately repeated it to Lieutenant-Colonel
Bassett of the Second Kansas, who in turn made the
necessary detail, with Captain Cameron unfortunately
in command. Instead of being at the picket-post, six
miles distant, at daylight, Cameron with his detail of
one hundred men did not leave camp until after
sunrise.
Sure enough, at daylight, the post was attacked by
an overwhelming force, and Captain Gardner was com-
pelled to fall back, but he contested every foot of the
ground until I reached him with a battalion of the Sec-
CAMPAIGN IN KANSAS 75
ond, when we checked and forced them into line.
While they were forming, the remainder of the Second
Kansas, and also a battalion of the Eleventh Kansas
Infantry, came up, and then a fight for the possession
of the hill began in earnest.
The real fighting forces on each side were about
equal in numbers, and occupied all the open space
available for cavalry on top of the hill or spur of the
Boston Mountains. Hindman with his army was over
in the valley two miles back, waiting for his cavalry to
open the road, that he might advance on Cane Hill and
strike Blunt, before Her r on (who was yet twenty-five
miles away) could arrive. My orders from General
Blunt were to hold the hill at all hazards, but not to
bring on a general engagement.
Colonel Shelby, who was commanding the Eebel
cavalry opposed to us, as he afterwards told me, was
ordered to take the hill regardless of consequences.
Having fought all morning with determination and lost
more than he gained, Shelby determined to change his
tactics, and in the afternoon he made two unsuccessful
charges, which were repulsed with heavy loss to him.
Becoming desperate, General Hindman sent Colonel
Emmet McDonald, the long-haired Greek of Boonsboro
fame, with his regiment to lead and show Joe Shelby
how to do it.
While they were forming a line for their last des-
perate charge, which they hoped would sweep the field
clean, I dismounted five companies of the Second and
formed them in line with three companies of the Elev-
enth Kansas Infantry, and then stationed the other five
companies of the Second on the right in column of
fours, ready to go left-front into line for a counter-
charge; then I awaited results. Emmet and Joe had
their line formed all right about six hundred yards in
our front, with a few scattering trees intervening, but
they seemed to hesitate in sounding the charge. Shelby
had already made two charges during the day, and
76 KANSAS IN THE SIXTIES
was tired. But Emmet was fresh and eager for the
fray. Still they did not move.
After waiting quite a while I sent Captain Russell
with a few picked men, and Captain Tough with his
scouts, forward to stir things up. They moved out in
front of the Rebel line and opened fire. That was im-
pudence that Southern chivalry could not endure.
Some fellow from Pike County gave a whoop, which
brought forth that old discordant sound known as the
Rebel yell, and that in turn infused courage sufficient
to enable them to make a start. At first they moved
slowly, then they increased their speed until they came
within forty yards of our line, when they received a
most deadly volley, which stopped their music and sent
many of them to the happy hunting-grounds. Those
who were not killed or wounded went back faster than
they came, followed closely by the reserve battalion
of the Second, until the field was cleared in the other
direction.
That was the end of our fighting on Saturday, De-
cember 6, and settled the question as to who were en-
titled to the possession of the hill. It was a hard,
bloody fight in proportion to the numbers engaged, but
it had to be made to save Blunt 's division. Finding
it impossible to open the road and cross his army over
the hill to attack Blunt 's division, General Hindman
during the night moved forward on the wire road to
Prairie Grove.
BATTLE OF PRAIRIE GROVE, DECEMBER 7, 1862
After the battle of the sixth I remained on the field
with a part of the Second Kansas until eleven o'clock
at night, when I was ordered to report to General Blunt
at Cane Hill. On arriving at his headquarters about
one o'clock on the morning of December 7, the day of
the Prairie Grove battle, I found him asleep on his cot ;
but he awoke suddenly and moved actively until the
close of the pending battle on that eventful day. I told
CAMPAIGN IN KANSAS 77
him of the operations at the front during the day ; of
the desperation of the enemy in trying to take the hill ;
of the cavalry charges of Colonel Shelby, repeatedly
made and successfully resisted; of the last desperate
charge made by Shelby and McDonald, and of our
countercharge which cleared the field of the enemy ex-
cept their dead and wounded. I told him also that
Hindman had changed his plan of crossing over to Cane
Hill and was at that moment moving north on the Fay-
etteville Eoad, evidently with the intention of getting
between him and Herron.
About half -past one o'clock, just as I was conclud-
ing my report, Colonel Wickersham of the Tenth Illi-
nois Cavalry came in and reported sixteen hundred
cavalry from Herron 's two divisions. Without con-
sidering the matter, General Blunt immediately or-
dered him to move due east six miles on the Hog Eye
Road and attack Hindman vigorously on the flank.
Wickersham had just completed a forced march of
ninety miles and he told the General that his men and
horses must have rest and something to eat. General
Blunt then changed his order and sent a staff officer
to show him where to camp and see that he was sup-
plied with rations and forage.
Later, during the night, General Blunt sent Col-
onel Eichardson with the Fourteenth Missouri Cavalry
and Captain Conkey's company of the Third Wiscon-
sin Cavalry, with instructions to attack Hindman 's col-
umn at any available point. Richardson moved
promptly, but before reaching the enemy he met Cap-
tain Coleman of the Ninth Kansas Cavalry with his
company, who had been on picket at the junction of the
Hog Eye and Fayetteville Roads, and driven back by
the advance of Hindman 's army. Richardson then
halted and reported the situation to General Blunt,
who immediately ordered Colonel Judson with the
Sixth Kansas Cavalry and two howitzers to reinforce
Richardson and attack Hindman. Judson did not
78 KANSAS IN THE SIXTIES
reach the Fayetteville Road until about eight o'clock
in the morning, when the rear of Hindman's army
was passing, and his advance fighting Herron at
Prairie Grove.
After reporting to General Blunt at one o'clock
A. M., I returned to the front, and at daylight on the
morning of the seventh I was on the hill where the
fighting had ceased the evening before. Everything
was quiet and the enemy was nowhere to be seen. At
nine o 'clock in the morning I heard Judson 's howitzers
apparently about three miles to the north on the Fay-
etteville Road. I was satisfied then, as I now know,
that he was shelling Hindman's rear-guard.
Blunt 's baggage train, escorted by Salomon's brig-
ade, had been ordered to Bhea's Mills as a place of
safety. About ten o 'clock the brigade of Colonel Wick-
ersham was started from Cane Hill in the direction of
Prairie Grove where Herron 's two divisions were fight-
ing Hindman's whole army. The Second Kansas was
left at the front until eleven o 'clock, when the regiment
moved and passed through Cane Hill at twelve, en
route for the battlefield.
Prairie Grove was about eight miles northeast of
Cane Hill, and Bhea 's Mills seven miles northwest. By
mistake Wickersham, followed by Weer's brigade, took
the road to Bhea's Mills and lost a considerable amount
of time in reaching the battlefield; but when they did
get there they made up for lost time. Cloud's brigade,
which was the last to leave Cane Hill, took the right
road and reached the field in advance of the two brig-
ades that had started earlier.
Herron 's infantry and artillery and a part of his
cavalry had reached Fayetteville late the night before,
and pushed resolutely forward to join General Blunt.
From Fayetteville his cavalry, except Wicker sham's
brigade (which was with Blunt), took the advance and
on reaching Illinois Creek at the northeast corner of
Prairie Grove, ran into the flower of Hindman's cav-
alry, under Marmaduke and Joe Shelby.
CAMPAIGN IN KANSAS 79
Herron's cavalry was taken completely by sur-
prise, and for an hour held the hot end of the poker as
a penalty for their carelessness. They were driven back
to the infantry with a loss of about three hundred men,
killed, wounded, and captured. But this mishap was
not entirely attributable to the carelessness of the of-
ficers. They were expecting every moment to meet
Blunt 's division, instead of Hindman's army.
When Shelby struck Herron's infantry he saw an-
other sight. The race then was in the other direction.
Herron moved steadily forward with his infantry and
artillery, crossed the Illinois Creek, and opened the
battle of Prairie Grove in earnest. From eleven o 'clock
in the morning until two o'clock in the afternoon, with
his two divisions of seven thousand men, he was fight-
ing Hindman 's army of twenty thousand.
A considerable part of Hindman's infantry, how-
ever, was rather weak, and depended largely for suc-
cess on what was known as the Eebel yell. That yell
early in the war had more or less effect on green troops,
but it had long since ceased to be potent in the West.
Herron's batteries of artillery, being planted on
available ground, sent forth a deadly fire of shot, shell,
and canister, alternately, as occasion required. His
solid veteran regiments of infantry moved forward
to close range and poured in volley after volley, until
the Rebel brigades, one after another, began to weaken.
Facing an army of about three to one in numbers, he
held his position until Blunt 's division reached the field
and formed on his right.
That brought General Hindman to a sense of his
misery. It was just what he had been manoeuvring for
three days to avoid. His first plan was to attack Blunt
at Cane Hill and defeat him before Herron came up.
Failing in that, his next plan was to attack Herron and
defeat him before Blunt could reach the field. Failing
in that, he was now face to face with a condition.
Blunt was there with his division rapidly swinging
into line. On his right was Colonel Wickersham 's
80 KANSAS IN THE SIXTIES
cavalry brigade, consisting of the Tenth Illinois, First
Iowa, Eighth Missouri, and Second Wisconsin. On
Wickersham's left was Colonel Weer's brigade, con-
sisting of the Tenth Kansas Infantry, the Thirteenth
Kansas Infantry and a detachment of the Third Indian,
with Captain Tenney's battery on Weer's right. On
Weer's left were Colonel Cloud's brigade, the Eleventh
Kansas Infantry, the Second Kansas Cavalry, dis-
mounted, and the First Indian, dismounted, with the
batteries of Captains Eabb and Hopkins to the left-
rear of Blunt 's line. To the left of Cloud's brigade
was Herron's right and in the centre were Stover's
howitzers.
To meet this force General Hindman brought up his
entire reserve, consisting of the divisions of Generals
Frost and Parsons, and also a part of Marmaduke's
division, dismounted. The Rebel line was vastly su-
perior to ours in point of numbers, but not otherwise.
Hindman, with twenty thousand men, had got the worst
of the fight with Herron before we reached the field;
and he and his officers were in disgrace in their own
estimation. Blunt had allowed Hindman to pass
around and throw his army against Herron, who was
coming to his relief, and he felt chagrined and des-
perate.
No two lines faced each other on the battlefield
during the Civil War, with more fiendish delight and
devilish determination, than did these contending
forces, from three o'clock in the afternoon until after
dark, in the battle of Prairie Grove. From the begin-
ning, it was give and take; a square stand-up and
knock-down fight. For three hours the roar of cannon,
the crash and bursting of shell, the rattle of musketry
and the shrieks of the wounded were simply appalling.
At one time the fire was so hot that Colonel Wattle's
battalion of Indians on my left broke and fled to the
rear, leaving a gap between my battalion and Herron 's
right, which was speedily occupied by the Rebels, and
CAMPAIGN IN KANSAS 81
for a while I was under a heavy fire from the front and
flank at the same time. But this lasted only long
enough for the Twentieth Iowa on Herron's extreme
right to make a half -wheel and put in a few volleys that
cleared the space. With great fury the battle raged
all along the line.
About sunset a Rebel brigade made a desperate
charge in the face of musketry and canister. They
were mowed down in swaths with bullets and canister,
as they advanced. In this awful situation they sought
shelter behind some hay ricks and straw stacks, where
they huddled like sheep, until Captain Eabb fired the
hay and straw with hot shot, when they were compelled
to retreat under a galling fire. This was perhaps the
bloodiest part of the field. At least the great number
of Confederate dead and wounded that lay piled in
heaps, gave evidence of a terrific slaughter.
Just before this last charge was made by the en-
emy, Eabb and Hopkins had moved their batteries
forward in line with the infantry. A short distance to
my right Stover's howitzers were in position. As the
enemy advanced, this artillery — twelve guns — opened
with canister. It was Hindman's forlorn hope, his
last effort; and from a military point of view, the
charge should not have been made. He should have
known that the attempt would plunge his men into the
very jaws of death. If he did not know it before, he
found it out later, to his sorrow. When this last en-
counter ended, the moon was shining brightly, and
Blunt 's forces were in line where they had been when
they went into action.
Hindman 's forces having fallen back a mile or more
over the hill, Blunt moved his division back a short
distance on the prairie and bivouacked for the night,
expecting to renew the battle at daylight. During the
night he removed his train from Bhea's Mills to Fay-
etteville and brought up Salomon's brigade of fresh
troops that had not been in action during the day. He
82 KANSAS IN THE SIXTIES
also brought on to the field a good many stragglers and
straggling companies, which, under one pretence or
another, had dodged the battle. He also reorganized
his troops for the battle of the next day.
His plan was to draw Hindman out on to the open
prairie, so as to give his cavalry a free rein. Every
detail for a renewal of the battle was arranged, and
the troops — Blunt 's division and Herron's — were
ready to go into action at daylight on the morning of
the eighth. But at daylight there was an unusual si-
lence in the direction of Hindman 's camp. A few sol-
itary horsemen could be seen here and there, but no
sign of an army in readiness for battle.
ARMISTICE EEQUESTED BY GENERAL HINDMAN
About sunrise, when our troops were ready to move
into line of battle, General Marmaduke appeared before
General Herron's headquarters, under a flag of truce,
and requested an interview and armistice for General
Hindman. Not caring to grant the request without
consulting General Blunt, Herron informed Marma-
duke that he would communicate with Blunt and if
agreeable to him, they would meet Hindman at ten
o'clock that morning. Marmaduke returned to Hind-
man's headquarters and Herron came over to see
Blunt.
At first they were both averse to granting either an
interview or an armistice. They both wanted to finish
the battle that day, and bury the dead afterwards.
But Marmaduke had told Herron that many of their
wounded were still on the field, suffering, and he
wanted time to remove them. So they finally concluded
to grant the interview.
At ten o'clock they met in the open field, midway
between the two lines, and the parley began. When
they first met, Hindman and Marmaduke were full of
fight, and nothing but " poor, suffering humanity,
spread over yonder bloody field, prevented them from
CAMPAIGN IN KANSAS 83
renewing the battle at daylight that morning. ' ' Little
did they know the temper and bulldog tenacity of the
two Generals, Blunt and Herron.
After rattling along for a few minutes on the line
of humanity, with a mixture of bluff and braggadocio
occasionally thrown in, General Hindman became elo-
quent, and branched out into a wide field of oratory
and the art of war, foreign to the subject-matter under
consideration, when General Blunt brought him up on
a round turn.
It became apparent to Blunt and Herron that Hind-
man was simply trying to kill time, and Blunt was not
slow in telling him so. He asked Hindman if he had
not taken his wounded off the field the night before,
as he (Blunt) had done; and if not, why? General
Hindman replied that they had removed a part of
their wounded but it was so dark that many could not
be found. " Besides," he said, " it is barbarous to
fight ' over so many dead bodies. " * ' Yes, ' ' replied
Blunt, ' ' but war is barbarous, and the sooner we close
this battle, the less barbarity we shall have. How
much time do you want? " Hindman replied that he
would like to have all day and then renew the battle the
next morning. Blunt said, " No, General; it is now
eleven o 'clock and I will give you until twelve, noon. ' '
Hindman then came down off his lofty pinnacle and
begged for more time, when Blunt and Herron finally
agreed that they would give him until four o'clock
P. M. With that understanding the interview closed,
and the several generals returned to their respective
commands.
At that moment Hindman 's infantry and artillery
were fifteen miles from the field under full retreat on
the road to Van Buren. His troops started on the re-
treat about one o'clock that morning, and Hindman
and Marmaduke were playing false to save their army.
Possibly under Confederate ethics, their treachery was
excusable; but under ordinary rules of civilized war-
84 KANSAS IN THE SIXTIES
fare, such conduct would be regarded as dishonorable
among soldiers, and disreputable among gentlemen.
Before Hindman's troops began to leave the field
after the battle, they built rousing camp-fires and left
them burning. That was legitimate tactics. But com-
ing under a flag of truce and begging, for the sake of
humanity, a suspension of hostilities, in order to bury
their dead and care for their wounded, and then run-
ning way and leaving that work for our troops to per-
form, was at least tricky, if not heartless.
From the armistice conference, Generals Hindman
and Marmaduke, after their requests had been granted
by Blunt and Herron, rode back through the field,
where their dead were lying all round and their
wounded suffering and begging for water and medical
treatment, without stopping to make any provision for
them. They assembled their detachments of cavalry
which had been held back as a rear-guard and imme-
diately left the field.
Our troops buried the Confederate dead and gath-
ered up their wounded and conveyed them to hospitals
where they were properly cared for.
REAL SOLDIERS AND POLITICAL, SOLDIERS
As a general, Hindman was not a Stonewall Jack-
son. Previous to this battle, where he fought and ran
away, he was encamped with more than twenty thou-
sand men in the vicinity of Dripping Springs and
Lee's Creek, twenty-five or thirty miles south of Cane
Hill. General Blunt, with not more than seven thou-
sand, was encamped around Cane Hill. General Her-
ron, with seven thousand men, was encamped along
Wilson's Creek near Springfield, Missouri, ninety miles
away. After the battle of Cane Hill, General Hindman
formed a junction with General Marmaduke 's forces,
and, as everybody knew, was preparing to attack Blunt
before reinforcements could reach him.
But he did not do it. He let the opportunity go by,
CAMPAIGN IN KANSAS 85
as I have already shown, and then in a hesitating sort
of way concluded to regain lost opportunities by at-
tacking Herron while Blunt was yet at Cane Hill.
This would have been a good stroke, if Marmaduke or
Joe Shelby had been in command; but with Hindman
at the helm, it was simply another lost opportunity.
Had the cavalry success of the early morning been
supported by the infantry and artillery, Herron would
have been repulsed, or fighting on the defensive, before
he crossed the Illinois Creek. But Hindman, the poli-
tician, was apparently afraid to leave the hill, and
hence lost another opportunity.
The real soldier and the political soldier do not
blend. The soldier strikes when the iron is hot; the
politician hesitates, hides in the brush, and recon-
noitres for a safe line of retreat. Both armies had an
oversufficiency of such officers, and as a result many
a brave soldier lost his life. Hindman was simply one
of many ; but he was a frightful example.
After the conference under a flag of truce, whereby
it was agreed that hostilities should cease until 4 P.
M., he rode away like a plumed knight returning from
a victorious field.
It required no field-glass to see the dark frowns
of disgust and contempt all over the resolute faces of
Marmaduke and Shelby, who had opened the battle
with Herron the previous morning under such favor-
able auspices. It required no ear-trumpet to hear the
lightning-like adjectives that flew from one to an-
other, when those war-scarred veterans were ordered
by Hindman to sound the assembly, furl their flags,
fold their tents, muffle their wheels, and steal silently
away. They would have scorned to violate the obliga-
tions of an agreement made under a flag of truce.
But not so with Hindman. With him, anything was
fair in war. Even treachery and the sacrifice of his
word and honor, plighted amid the dead bodies of his
own brave soldiers, which lay scattered over the field.
86 KANSAS IN THE SIXTIES
Such were the closing scenes of the battle of Prairie
Grove. When four o'clock came, the time set for the
battle to be renewed, Hindman and his army were
only touching the high places as they went splashing
down Cove Creek Valley and bounding over the Bos-
ton Mountains, twenty-six miles away.
After burying the dead and caring for the wounded
of both armies, General Blunt 's troops returned to
their camps at Cane Hill and Rhea 's Mills ; and General
Herron went into camp on the battlefield.
Hindman fell back fifty miles to the Arkansas River
and went into winter quarters at Fort Smith and Van
Buren. Marmaduke, Shelby, and McDonald, with
their cavalry, moved down the river forty to sixty
miles, and camped among plantations where forage
and provisions were plentiful.
This was thought by many to be the close of the
campaign, but it was not so.
CHAPTER VH
RAID ON VAN BUEEN
CAPTURE OF FOUR STEAMBOATS PURSUIT OF REBELS IN
SOUTHWEST MISSOURI.
ON the twenty-sixth of December, Blunt and Herron
moved with eight thousand men, three batteries
of artillery, and three sections of mountain howitzers,
on an expedition to Van Buren and Fort Smith, in the
vicinity of which General Hindman was encamped.
The first night they camped on Lee's Creek, twenty-
five miles south of Cane Hill. The next morning the
command moved at daylight with Colonel Cloud's
brigade in advance, the Second Kansas Cavalry
leading.
At Dripping Springs, on our line of march, fourteen
miles north of Van Buren, a regiment of Texas cavalry
was encamped with a forage train of forty wagons.
On approaching this Rebel camp I was sent forward
with five companies of the Second to drive in the pick-
ets and stir up the ' ' bowie-knife ' ' regiment generally.
The colonel commanding knew of our coming, but
did not know in what force. He was camped west of
the Van Buren Road, on the south side of what had
been a corn-field with a low rail-fence around it. He
had opened alternate panels of the fence near his
camp, and formed one battalion, mounted in line of
battle along the fence inside the field. Most of his
tents had been struck and, with his baggage, etc.,
loaded in wagons which he had started early in the
morning on a run for Van Buren. The other battalion
had been sent out in rear of his train and stood in line
across the road about a half-mile south.
87
88 KANSAS IN THE SIXTIES
When I came over the hill with my battalion from
the north, in advance of all our troops, I took in the
situation at a glance. To the west of the road, on the
farther side of the field and about five hundred yards
distant, stood this Texas battalion in line. Without
halting, I threw my battalion into columns of com-
panies and thence forward into line, which brought me
face to face with the Texas battalion in the field, with
a rail-fence between us.
The fence was about one hundred yards in my
front, and without waiting to remove the rails I or-
dered the battalion to sling carbines and drew pistols.
Then I ordered the bugler to sound the trot. I was a
few paces in front of the battalion and when my horse
reached the fence, we went over without touching. In
an instant the battalion struck the fence abreast and
the rails flew in every direction, but the men and horses
went over without an accident and without halting.
The line moved straight forward at a steady trot, every
man with pistol in hand. At the proper time I swung
around to the rear of the battalion and ordered the
bugler to sound the charge. When within about forty
paces our men opened fire, and the Texas battalion
broke and went back through the panels of the fence
that had previously been laid down, and retreated in
disorder to the other battalion a half-mile in the rear.
Just then Colonel Cloud with the other battalion of
the Second dashed past on the main road, and reaching
the Texas battalion in line across the road, broke them
with a charge which was repeated time and again
until he began to pass the wagons ; and then it was a
running cavalry fight over a rough country until Cloud
had captured thirty-eight of the enemy's wagons loaded
with camp and garrison equipage.
When Cloud passed to the front, Lieutenant-Col-
onel Bassett came up and took command of my bat-
talion, and instead of joining Cloud on the main road,
moved off on a bypath and became entangled in a
dense forest. This kept us out of the fight from Drip-
RAID ON VAN BUREN 89
ping Springs to within a mile of Van Buren. There
we rejoined Cloud and participated in a skirmish at
Log Town, which was the last stand made by the Texas
regiment on that eventful day. When they broke at
Log Town, the men rushed pell-mell down a cut road
along the side of a steep hill into the head of Van
Buren Street, which led straight to the river. That
was the last we saw of the " bowie-knife " regiment.
CAPTURE OF FOUR STEAMBOATS
Log Town was a village of a dozen shanties, stand-
ing on a high hill overlooking Van Buren and the
beautiful Arkansas valley, with Fort Smith dimly seen
five miles away. Here we captured the last but one
of their forty wagons; and over in the river, in full
view, lay four fine steamboats loaded with supplies
for Hindman 's army.
The enemy having vanished after the Log Town
skirmish, Colonel Cloud ordered his regiment forward
down the hill, and then down Van Buren Street, in col-
umn of companies, at a swift gallop to the river.
Meantime the ferry-boat, crowded with Confederate
officers, was in midstream pulling for the south shore,
and the steamboats were steering down the river. One
had got up stream and was a half-mile away, while the
others were not so far from shore. Colonel Cloud see-
ing the situation, ordered Stover with his howitzers
forward at a run and opened on the ferry-boat, stop-
ping it in midstream; but the Rebel officers and men
aboard leaped into the river and made good their
escape.
While this was going on, I moved my battalion rap-
idly down the north bank of the river, and throwing
one company after another into line opposite three of
the steamers, opened on the pilots and brought them
in. The other boat by this time was rounding the bend
a mile and a half southeast of Van Buren, where the
river turns and runs northward for about a mile.
At this critical moment Cloud came up with Stover 's
90 KANSAS IN THE SIXTIES
howitzers, and having been informed as to the bend in
the river and the cut-off road, ordered me to bring my
battalion, and started with Stover's howitzers, under
whip and spur, across the bend to head off the boat.
The distance to the north bend in the river from where
the steamboat then was, and from our starting point,
was about the same. So it was a sure-enough race.
Like Hindman's retreat from Prairie Grove, the Sec-
ond Kansas only touched the high places. Stover's
horses and howitzers were in the air quite as much as
on the ground, but we were there in time. When we
whirled into line facing the river, the boat, under a
heavy pressure of steam, was about six hundred yards
away. It was puffing, heaving, and setting as though
the life of the Confederacy were at stake.
At the proper distance Colonel Cloud directed Lieu-
tenant Stover to level one of his guns and send a shot
across the bow. This was the first intimation the cap-
tain of the boat had that he was still in durance vile.
Another shot brought him to, and he rounded his boat
near to shore and threw out the gangway. Colonel
Cloud, with a guard of twenty men, went on board,
took possession of the boat, pulled down the Confed-
erate flag and steamed up the river to Van Buren. I
returned overland with my battalion and Stover's
howitzers, and picked up en route the last of the en-
emy's forty wagons, which had left Dripping Springs
that morning.
In passing through Van Buren in the evening, Gen-
eral Hindman, across the river, turned a battery on
my battalion and one of his shells exploded over our
heads, killing one man and wounding a number of
horses, my own horse included. The next day Colonel
Cloud was ordered with his regiment on a reconnoit-
ring expedition down the river for a distance of
twenty-five miles, and we did not return until ten
o 'clock at night.
During the day Generals Blunt and Herron had
RAID ON VAN BUEEN 91
burned the captured steamers to the water's edge and
started back on the return to Cane Hill and Prairie
Grove. The Second camped at Van Buren that night
and left the next morning, bringing up the rear.
The next night we camped at Dick Oliver's ranch on
Lee 's Creek, and the next afternoon we reached our old
camp at Cane Hill. This was the close of the campaign
of 1862, which, from the day General Blunt left Fort
Scott, until he returned from Van Buren, was in every
way a complete success.
On the thirty-first of December, General Schofield,
having returned from sick-leave, again assumed com-
mand of the Frontier Army and ordered Blunt 's divi-
sion to Elm Springs and Herron's two divisions to
Fayetteville, Arkansas. On the first of January, 1863,
I was detailed on a General Court-martial which con-
vened at Fayetteville on January 2, and held sessions
at Huntsville, Arkansas, Cassville, Flat Rock, and
Springfield, Missouri. On March 12, 1863, our Court-
martial was dissolved, and the officers composing the
same were sent back to their respective regiments.
The Second Kansas was then at Springfield, and
Colonel Cloud was commanding the Southwest Dis-
trict of Missouri. Lieutenant-Colonel Bassett and
Majors Blair and Fisk were on detached service; so,
being the ranking officer present, I assumed command
of the regiment. Having been in winter quarters since
early in January, the regiment was not in proper con-
dition for active service. My first effort was to call
in the men who were absent on furlough or detached
service, and next, to secure horses for a remount of
the regiment. These two important matters having
been accomplished, the Second Kansas Cavalry was
again ready for the field.
PUBSUIT OF REBELS IN SOUTHWEST MISSOURI
On the eighteenth of May I received an order from
Colonel Cloud, commanding the Southwest District of
92 KANSAS IN THE SIXTIES
Missouri, to be in readiness to move the next morn-
ing on an expedition against General Stand Watie
and Colonel Coffey of Confederate fame, who were
ravaging the country in the vicinity of Neosho and
Carthage.
On the morning of the nineteenth, I moved as di-
rected and reached Dug Springs, twenty-five miles
distant, in the evening. When within about three miles
of these springs, I took Dr. Eoot, Chaplain Wines, and
one of our scouts, and moved forward to select a suit-
able place for camping. Having selected the ground on
which to camp, we all dismounted at one of the springs
near the road to wait for the command to come up, —
all except our scout, who, being familiar with that
part of the country, felt perfectly at ease. In a few
minutes, however, we saw a party of four men and
two women in the valley but a short distance from us.
Being accompanied by women, we naturally took them
to be Union people going from Cassville to Springfield,
and thought no more of it. But our scout was not so
easily satisfied. He rode out within speaking distance
of them, and getting no satisfaction, called to me,
" Come over! "
We looked and saw that they were dressed in the
bushwhacker's garb, and seemed to be heavily armed
and well mounted. There were four of us; but our
chaplain and Dr. Eoot had no guns. We mounted our
horses and rode directly up to them with pistols in
hand. I asked the leader of the party who they were
and where they belonged. Receiving what I regarded
as an evasive answer, I then said, " Consider your-
selves prisoners of war. Dismount and hand your
guns to that man," pointing to Dr. Eoot.
The leader, who had nerve, said, " No," and reached
for his pistol. That left me no alternative but to fire,
which I did, striking a rib on his left side. We then
both fired the same instant aijd, on account of our
RAID ON VAN BUREN 93
fractious horses, both missed. My next shot went
through his thigh, and his second grazed my cheek.
He then wheeled his horse and tried to escape, but was
speedily brought back, badly, but not dangerously,
wounded. The other three men surrendered, and all
were sent back to Springfield the next morning as
prisoners.
Subsequent to this episode, Colonel Cloud arrived
with the remainder of his brigade, and during the
evening informed his officers of the object and purpose
of the expedition. His plan of campaign was to move
to Bentonville, Arkansas, and cut off the retreat of the
Rebels operating around Neosho and Carthage. We
made a forced march from Dug Springs to Benton-
ville and thence to Pineville, Missouri, where we
bivouacked during the night of May 21.
On the twenty-second we moved to Neosho where
we struck a body of Stand Watie 's men, who formed in
a valley west of town and made a demonstration as
though they were spoiling for a fight. Stand Watie
was there in person, with feathers in his cap, thinking
that it was Pin Indians he had to fight. While he was
forming his braves in line, Colonel Cloud pushed for-
ward a section of Eabb's battery on a low hill within
easy range of Stand Watie 's position, but hidden from
view. Then sending a battalion of Missouri cavalry
around on his left and a battalion of the Second Kan-
sas to his right, he opened fire with his artillery. That
took the breath out of the Indians. They did not stand
on the order of going; they simply flew down the val-
ley, past Seneca, and thence onward, right onward, into
the Spavin Hills.
I changed front, and was in readiness to give them
a volley as they passed, but the Missouri troops were
so close on their heels, that I dared not fire. This was
the end of Stand Watie in Missouri for many moons.
From the Spavin Hills, he threw himself under the
94 KANSAS IN THE SIXTIES
protecting wings of General Cooper, south of the
Arkansas.
From the scene of this ludicrous display, Colonel
Cloud moved on to Diamond Grove where he separated
his command by taking most of the cavalry and going
west in pursuit of Colonel Coffey, who was then en-
camped on Shoal Creek south of where Joplin now
stands, and sending me with one battalion and the ar-
tillery northward in the direction of the Lamar Road.
The Colonel struck Coffey where he expected, and
after a running fight of several miles drove him across
Shoal Creek into the jungle east of Spring River, where
at that time, the wolves, bushwhackers, and all sorts
of vermin made themselves at home. After recon-
noitring the country north of Spring Eiver, I rejoined
Colonel Cloud at Carthage and accompanied him back
to Springfield.
All in all, the expedition was both pleasant and suc-
cessful. It was very like chasing jack rabbits on the
plains, and fraught with about as much danger. Of
all the makeshifts and disreputable, false pretenders
that ever hung on the flanks of a respectable army,
Stand Watie and his gang were the worst. As soldiers,
they were cowards, thieves, and cut-throats. They
would skulk and hide in the brush when the battle was
on, and when it was over they would sneak on to the
field and murder and scalp our wounded. When caught
out alone, one shot from Stover 's howitzers would put
a thousand of them to flight, and two shells would send
Stand Watie 's whole brigade back to Boggy Depot.
And yet such men as Generals Price, Kirby Smith,
Marmaduke, and Joe Shelby permitted them to prowl
in their rear and disgrace their troops. Such barbar-
ians should not have been permitted to camp even
among the wild tribes of the plains, much less among
civilized soldiers. But such was their custom and such
a custom helped to bring disaster to those who tol-
erated it.
CHAPTER
EXPEDITION TO CHOCTAW NATION CAPTURE OF FORT
SMITH
BATTLE OF PERRYVILLE BATTLE OF THE BACKBONE MOUN-
TAINS, SEPTEMBER 1, 1863 OCCUPYING FORT SMITH
ADIEU TO THE SECOND KANSAS CAVALRY.
ON the last day of December, 1862, Generals Blunt
and Herron closed their brilliant campaign of the
year at Van Buren, on the Arkansas Eiver, in sight of
Fort Smith. But then they were far from their base
of supplies, and deemed it advisable to move back to
Springfield, Fort Scott, and Fort Gibson for winter
quarters.
When Blunt and Herron moved back to winter
quarters, the Confederate forces again moved up and
occupied Little Rock, Fort Smith, and Fort Davis, on
the south side of the Arkansas River. General Holmes
commanded at Little Rock, General Cabell at Fort
Smith, and General Cooper at Fort Davis, with Stand
Watie's Indians scattered over the Indian Territory
in search of something to eat.
General Blunt was at Fort Scott preparing for a
summer campaign south of the Arkansas. During the
winter and early spring, nothing, from a military point
of view, was doing. But on July 6, General Blunt left
Fort Scott with a part of the Army of the Frontier
and arrived at Fort Gibson, July 11. On the sixteenth
he crossed the Arkansas River, and on the seventeenth
attacked General Cooper at Honey Springs in the
Creek country. After a sharp engagement of two
hours, he routed and drove the Confederate forces from
the field with heavy losses. A few hours after the bat-
95
96 KANSAS IN THE SIXTIES
tie, and while on the retreat southward, General Cooper
was reinforced by General Cabell from Fort Smith,
with a brigade of cavalry and four pieces of artillery ;
but they did not return to the battlefield. After a
brief consultation, they moved on to the Canadian
River to await reinforcements en route from Texas.
General Blunt camped on the battlefield until the
next day, when he moved back to Fort Gibson to pre-
pare for an expedition through the Choctaw Country
to Fort Smith, Arkansas. On arriving at Fort Gibson,
he sent orders to Colonel Cloud at Springfield, and
others of his old division, to join him at that place.
Cloud's brigade consisted of the Second Kansas Cav-
alry, the Sixth Missouri Cavalry, the First Arkansas
Infantry, the Second Indiana battery, and Stover's
howitzers. When the order was received to join Blunt
at Fort Gibson, Cloud's brigade was in the field in
Southwest Missouri and Northwest Arkansas. Con-
centrating at Fayetteville, we marched by way of Tah-
lequah and arrived at Gibson on August 21.
While General Blunt was concentrating his troops at
Fort Gibson for a forward movement, Generals Cooper
and Cabell were encamped on the Canadian River.
After resting a few days, General Cabell took his
brigade and returned to Fort Smith, leaving Cooper at
the mercy of the elements and the enemy. However,
he had not long to wait. General Gano, a fighting of-
ficer, moved to his relief with a brigade of fighting
soldiers, and they were more soothing to the nerves
of the poor old gentleman. He immediately moved his
war-scarred veterans across the river at Briartown and
held them in readiness to hit the road for the " big
drift " on the lightest intimation that Blunt was com-
ing. Gano was a gallant soldier. He knew how, and
was not afraid to fight. But Cooper — well, he had
missed his calling. Besides, his troops were an uncer-
tain quantity in action. His comrades and the Confed-
eracy should look with compassion upon his blunders.
EXPEDITION TO CHOCTAW NATION 97
General Blunt 's forces having assembled at Fort
Gibson, he took about five thousand men, cavalry, ar-
tillery, and infantry, and moved in pursuit of General
Cooper. At noon on August 24, he reached Briartown
on the Canadian River, and found Cooper camped on
the south side about two miles distant.
Soon after we arrived, General Blunt 's scouts came
in and reported a Confederate train of three hundred
wagons at Perryville, forty-five miles away. Within
an hour after receiving this report General Blunt di-
rected me to take the Second Kansas Cavalry, a part
of the Third Wisconsin Cavalry, and a part of the
Fourteenth Kansas Cavalry, with a section of ar-
tillery, and swing around Cooper to the west by way
of North Fork Town and then make a forced march to
Perryville.
I moved at three o'clock and reached North Fork
Town at 6 P. M., where I captured and destroyed a
quantity of Confederate quartermaster's stores and
artillery ammunition. At dark I crossed the Canadian
Eiver, knocked Colonel Mclntosh's regiment to pieces,
and took the road to Perryville. At eleven o'clock I
captured Major Vore — a Confederate paymaster —
his ambulance, escort of ten men, and forty thousand
dollars of Confederate money, with which he was going
up to pay the regiment I had a few hours before sent
glimmering through the dark forest of the North
Canadian.
I told Major Vore, who seemed to be an all round
clever gentleman, that he might as well go along with
me, because I had anticipated his coming, and taken the
precaution to drive Mclntosh's troops into the jungle,
where omniscience would not find them, nor omnipo-
tence put them together again. He replied in substance
that he was pleased to go with me ; and then said that
he felt it his duty to tell me that I was plunging right
into the jaws of death. I replied, " Yes, that suits me.
But before plunging, I should be pleased to know
98 KANSAS IN THE SIXTIES
whether it is the jaws of Cooper or Bankhead."
" Neither," he said. " It is the jaws of Gano, who is
camped over there at the junction of this and the
Briartown and Perryville roads. ' ' That was informa-
tion worth having, so I prepared myself accordingly.
BATTLE OF PEBBYVILLE
At two o'clock on the morning of August 25, I
drove in General Gano's pickets and soon thereafter
his grand guard. The night was dark, and the road
was rough and almost impassable, down a steep hill
through a heavy body of timber. But we finally over-
came all obstacles and formed in line on the open
prairie in front of Gano's camp. I had about a thou-
sand men in line and two pieces of artillery, but it was
impossible to estimate the strength of the enemy until
daylight.
I had left Cooper south of the Canadian, near Briar-
town, the previous afternoon, and marched thirty-five
miles by way of North Fork Town and back to the
Perryville Eoad at a point fifteen miles south of Briar-
town. So I did not know whether Cooper had moved
and formed a junction with Gano before I reached him.
When daylight came I knew that Cooper was not there,
and throwing a battalion back to look after him, should
he come up in my rear, I moved forward and attacked
Gano.
After skirmishing for perhaps an hour with no par-
ticular advantage to either side, I heard artillery in
the rear and knew then that Cooper was coming. It
was quite a mix-up. Gano was in my front, Cooper in
my rear, and Blunt in Cooper's rear. Had Cooper
moved forward promptly, he might have crowded my
line out on one side or the other, because no one can
very well fight an equal force in front, and at the same
time a largely superior force in the rear.
But Cooper did not do this. He pulled off the main
road with his whole army and passed around on the
EXPEDITION TO CHOCTAW NATION 99
open prairie to my left and allowed Blunt to move up
within supporting distance in my rear. With Cooper
off my rear I moved forward in earnest and we had a
running fight to Perryville, where the enemy formed on
top of the hill at the edge of the village and raked the
road with artillery, until we flanked them on the right
and left and drove them from their last position. It
was after dark when we dislodged them at Perryville
and then I followed them with the Second Kansas for
quite a distance on the road to Bed River.
THE BATTLE OF THE BACKBONE MOUNTAINS, SEPTEMBER 1,
1863
Resting at Perryville until noon of August 26,
General Blunt moved with his division on the Fort
Smith Road and arrived at Sculleyville on the evening
of August 31. Here the country was rough, hilly, and
much broken. General Cabell, commanding at Fort
Smith, had felled trees, and otherwise obstructed the
road and the crossing of the Poto River at Sculleyville.
On arriving at this crossing Colonel Cloud went for-
ward with a detachment of the Second Kansas and
skirmished with the enemy until a late hour at night.
The next morning the command drove the enemy
steadily into and through Fort Smith, and south over
the Backbone Mountains.
On top of one of the hills, called the Devil's Back-
bone, fifteen miles south of Fort Smith, General Cabell
made his last stand. The approach to his line was
up-grade through timber, in which it was difficult to
manoeuvre cavalry and artillery. But Colonel Cloud
formed his line of battle at the base of the hill, with
the Sixth Missouri Cavalry under the gallant Colonel
Catherwood on the right, Rabb's battery in the centre,
and the Second Kansas on the left.
The line moved forward up the hill steadily under
the enemy's fire, until within close range, and then
opened with Sharps rifles. At the same tune, Rabb,
100 KANSAS IN THE SIXTIES
who had planted his battery in the road where the
timber had been cut away, opened first with shell and
then with canister at close range.
The enemy, firing down-grade, overshot both with
their small arms and artillery. Eabb, in using shell at
an elevation, made the same mistake; but when he
changed to canister, there was something doing.
Eight companies of the Second Kansas were fighting
on foot, and I had two mounted companies on my left
flank. A part of Catherwood's regiment was also dis-
mounted. General Cabell had apparently dismounted
his whole command and made his men lie down behind
breastworks, composed of logs, officers' trunks, and
camp kettles.
The battle raged for about two hours, with our line
moving closer and closer toward the enemy, and Babb
double-charging his guns a part of the time. Finally
I discovered that Cabell 's right flank was unprotected,
and immediately threw forward the two mounted com-
panies from my left, and with a sudden dash put that
part of his line out of business. About the same time
Catherwood's regiment on the enemy's left, and our
dismounted men in the centre, moved forward with a
yell and sent Cabell and his men tumbling over each
other down the hill and back to Dixie.
But in justice to General Cabell I must say that he
tried to hold his men, and probably would have suc-
ceeded, at least for a while, had it not been for Sergt.
Patrick Murphy, a witty Irishman, in a Texas regi-
ment. Cabell, in trying to restore confidence, gave the
command, " Lie down." Patrick, in the confusion,
misunderstood him and instantly yelled out at the top
of his voice : ' ' And did you hear the Gineral say,
' Light out' I " Suiting his action to his words, he
bounded away like a wild deer, followed by the whole
command, including the General.
We doubtless would have had more or less sym-
pathy for General Cabell, in his pitiable condition that
EXPEDITION TO CHOCTAW NATION 101
day, but for the fact that while forming his line of
battle in the morning, he had dismounted and stationed
in ambush, behind a fence close to the road on which
we were approaching, a company of his troops for the
purpose of assassination. When my advance guard
of 40 men arrived abreast of his concealed bushwhack-
ers, they fired a volley at close range, killing the cap-
tain and four of his men and wounding six others.
This was a species of warfare to which the Second
Kansas never condescended. That regiment fought in
the open and was always there at the beginning and
the ending, but never once did any soldier of the regi-
ment sneak around in the brush and shoot an enemy in
the back.
OCCUPYING FORT SMITH
After this battle we moved back to Fort Smith,
and were the first Federal troops to occupy that city
since the beginning of the Civil War. Fort Smith then,
as now, was a beautiful city. The men were mostly
out hunting, but the women and children were at home.
They had been shamefully deceived as to the personnel
of the Federal troops. Many intelligent, educated, re-
fined ladies looked upon Federal officers and soldiers
as rough, ignorant, uncouth barbarians, without any
regard for truth, integrity, or virtue. For the first
few days of our occupation it was pitiable to see and
hear of their distress. They were afraid to venture
out of their houses and afraid to stay at home without
a guard.
I camped with the Second Kansas in a lovely grove
at the south end of the main street. No officer or sol-
dier was allowed to leave camp without a written pass ;
and the same was true of other regiments camped in
and around the city. This was quite different from
what the people of Fort Smith were accustomed to
seeing when the Confederate troops were stationed
among them.
102 KANSAS IN THE SIXTIES
Gradually all classes, by proper treatment, began to
see that, after all, the Federal troops were not so bad
as they had been represented. We were not there to
make war upon women and children, or to disturb them
in any way. Our purpose was to suppress the Rebel-
lion as quickly as possible, and then go home.
ADIEU TO THE SECOND KANSAS CAVALRY
At the close of the campaign, on December 31, 1862,
the line officers of the Second signed a petition to the
Governor requesting my promotion to the colonelcy of
that regiment, on the supposition that Colonel Cloud,
by reason of his splendid military record, would be ap-
pointed a brigadier-general. But Cloud was not so
fortunate, so when we returned from this last arduous
campaign and captured Fort Smith, I was, by authority
of the Secretary of War, tendered the colonelcy of the
Eighty-third U. S. Colored Infantry. That regiment
was then at Fort Smith with every company recruited
to the maximum, and all the officers appointed and on
duty, except the colonel.
I took a few days to consider the proposition, be-
cause :
First: It was an infantry regiment, and I pre-
ferred the cavalry.
Second: It was a colored regiment, and I pre-
ferred a white regiment.
Third: It was a new regiment, with inexperienced
officers, and that meant months of tedious, hard work,
drilling and preparing the regiment for field ser-
vice.
Fourth: It signified that we must fight under the
Black Flag, because the Confederate authorities had
issued instructions to the Confederate army to spare
the life of no captured white officer of a colored regi-
ment. Those instructions, however, had no terrors for
me. They simply meant a game at which two could
play. But after due consideration I waived all ob-
EXPEDITION TO CHOCTAW NATION
103
jections and notified General Blunt that I would ac-
cept the appointment.
The next day, September 10, 1863, I bade adieu to
the dear old Second Kansas, a regiment that never
faltered on the field of battle. With it I had been in
many hot places, broken many Rebel lines, and cap-
tured many prisoners, and quantities of arms and other
munitions of war.
CHAPTER IX
THE EIGHTY-THIRD COLORED INFANTRY
CAMP LIFE AT FORT SMITH ORDERS TO MOVE ON SHREVE-
PORT — BATTLE OF PRAIRIE D*ANE, APRIL 11-12, 1864 —
DISGRACEFUL RETREAT OF GENERAL STEELE SKIR-
MISH AT MOSCOW, APRIL 13, 1864.
ON" the first of October, 1863, I was appointed by
President Lincoln as Colonel of the Second Kan-
sas Colored Infantry, afterwards numbered by the
War Department as the Eighty-third U. S. Colored
Infantry. On the first of November I left Fort Scott
with a train of six hundred Government wagons loaded
with supplies for the army at Fort Smith, Arkansas.
As an escort for the train, I had the Eighty-third Col-
ored Infantry and parts of the Third Wisconsin, and
Fourteenth Kansas Cavalry with two pieces of ar-
tillery. The train and escort, when strung out on
the march, covered a space of six miles, over a rough
road, and a part of the time with Stand Watie's In-
dians and bands of bushwhackers prowling about the
woods on both flanks, watching for an opportunity to
capture or burn the wagons.
From Spring River south over the Boston Moun-
tains, skirmishing was the order of the day, and some-
times fighting on both sides of the road at the same
time. But on November 15 we reached Fort Smith
without the loss of a wagon, and on the seventeenth
I went into winter quarters on the right of the Union
line.
The evening we reached Spring River the wind was
blowing a gale, and the grass in the valley where we
x>arked the train was high and dry. Among the team-
104
EIGHTY-THIRD COLORED INFANTRY 105
sters were about eighty ex-bushwhackers, who had
taken the oath of allegiance and been released from
the guard-house in Fort Scott and employed by the
quartermaster, under a solemn promise that they would
be good.
I had no faith in them from the start, and so noti-
fied the post-commandant at Fort Scott; but he
thought otherwise, so I took them on probation. The
second day out on the road, they began to feel their
way and show their disposition, by twisting their teams
around and occasionally breaking or upsetting a wag-
on, which generally would delay the wagons in the
rear. Becoming satisfied as to their malicious intent,
I warned them of their danger; but the leopard does
not change his spots. Only a few of them profited by
the advice and warning I gave them. They evidently
had an understanding among themselves, and were only
waiting for an opportunity to try to destroy the train.
That opportunity, as they thought, came the even-
ing we arrived at Spring Eiver. The train was parked
in the tall grass, and orders given to each wagon-mas-
ter to keep a guard over every fire while the men were
cooking, and then put the fire out. This order was
obeyed strictly by all, except a bunch of the ex-butter-
nuts, who, all of a sudden, started three fires at the
upper end, from which a heavy wind was sweeping over
the whole camp.
Knowing the danger of a fire, with or without de-
sign, I had camped the Eighty-third Infantry near the
danger joint, with instructions to be on the alert, and
if a fire should start to lose no time in putting it out.
When the fires started, Major Gilpatrick, command-
ing the Eighty-third, was there with five or six hundred
men, and by the time the flames had begun to leap over
the nearest wagons, the fire was checked, before any
serious damage was done.
Anticipating trouble, I had kept my horse in read-
iness, and at the first cry of fire I went into the saddle
106 KANSAS IN THE SIXTIES
and was there quickly. When I arrived, the soldiers
were exerting themselves to their utmost; using their
new overcoats on the flames, while the butternut team-
sters stood around in bunches, with broad grins on
their faces. When I came up I told them to take the
empty sacks near by and help put out the fire which
was still spreading. Three or four of their leaders
turned away with sneering remarks, to the effect that
they didn't hire to fight fire. I replied that they
would fight something else, and one after another they
went down, with my old cavalry sword ringing at
their ears. That settled all differences of opinion, and
in less than a minute, every teamster present, except
their three leaders, was doing his level best, and all
worked faithfully until the fire was extinguished. From
there on to Fort Smith, everything, including the
slightly disabled gentlemen who " didn't hire to fight
fire," worked to a charm.
CAMP LIFE AT FORT SMITH
On going into winter quarters at Fort Smith, the
first thing to be done was to put the camp in order.
My camp was a mile from the Fort with the Poto River
on my right. The ground was slightly rolling, but
level enough for a most beautiful camp, with drill and
parade grounds convenient, and in every way suitable.
All in all, we had a model camp, and every facility for
making a model regiment.
We all knew just what we were going into. We
had been told, and we believed, that President Davis
had issued an order directing his army officers to take
no prisoners — officers or soldiers — belonging to col-
ored regiments. We knew of the prejudice that ex-
isted everywhere against colored troops. We knew
that the prevailing opinion was that the negro as a
soldier would not fight. Yet, notwithstanding all this,
we assumed the risk and the responsibility and set
about to do our duty.
EIGHTY-THIRD COLORED INFANTRY 107
Our camp having been established and put in order,
I then prescribed a code of iron-clad rales for the good
of the regiment. I knew that nothing but drill, dis-
cipline, and more drill, would fit the regiment for the
field in such condition as to give every officer and
soldier absolute confidence in the ability of the regi-
ment to take care of itself under any and all circum-
stances. When we commenced our daily duty, on the
twentieth of November, 1863, the regiment had its full
quota of officers and about nine hundred enlisted men.
My rules required every officer and soldier to get
up at reveille and attend roll-call in the morning ; then
to put their tents in order and be ready for the break-
fast call. After breakfast, every week day, we had
company drill in the forenoon, regimental drill in the
afternoon, dress parade in the evening, and officers'
school at night. Every Sunday we had inspection in
the morning and dress parade in the evening. This
was our daily routine, morning, noon, and night, when
the weather would permit.
The line officers were told at the beginning that they
must make good in drill, discipline, and military ap-
pearance, or hand in their resignations; that no
drones, shirks, or incompetents would be tolerated
after they had been given a reasonable time in which
to qualify. As a result of these necessary proceedings,
we soon had a number of vacancies.
To fill these vacancies I requested the colonels of
the various white regiments in the Frontier Army to
select some of the best and most competent of their
fighting non-commissioned officers and soldiers, who
were willing to go before a board to be examined for
promotion, as officers in the Eighty-third. About sixty
brave, daring young men passed the examination and
were recommended by the board. From these I made
a selection of bright young lieutenants, who were from
time to time appointed and assigned to duty.
While thus arranging for officers who would stand
108 KANSAS IN THE SIXTIES
the test, we at the same time subjected the enlisted
men to a careful and rigid physical examination, which
resulted in the discharge of about two hundred men,
leaving the material for a solid, compact regiment of
over seven hundred young, athletic soldiers; with a
full quota of officers who were not afraid of Davis 's
Black Flag. The regiment, as now organized, was
composed of material out of which a real fighting reg-
iment could be made.*
The Black Flag order of the Confederacy was a
godsend to the colored regiments. Every officer and
every soldier knew that it meant the bayonet, with no
quarter, whenever and wherever they met the enemy.
At least that was the definite understanding among the
officers and enlisted men of the Eighty-third U. S. ;
and the regiment was drilled, and disciplined, and in-
structed accordingly.
After four months' steady drill and discipline in
camp at Fort Smith, the Eighty-third could execute
with precision every moment required of an infantry
regiment. And in the manual of arms and the bayonet
exercise, it had no superior in the Seventh Army Corps.
And more, every officer and soldier in the regiment
knew what the regiment could do; and that inspired
all the confidence essential on the field of battle. When
Spring opened, we were ready for the fray, and for-
tunately had not long to wait.
The Confederate forces under Generals Kirby
Smith, Dick Taylor, Sterling Price, Marmaduke, and
others, were encamped at Shreveport, Louisiana, and
at Camden, Arkadelphia, and Washington in South-
west Arkansas. General Fred. Steele, commanding
the Seventh Army Corps, was at Little Eock with two
of his divisions. General Clayton was at Pine Bluffs,
and General Thayer with the Kansas division at Fort
Smith.
*See Appendix for roster of regimental officers.
EIGHTY-THIRD COLORED INFANTRY 109
ORDERS TO MOVE ON SHBEVEPOBT
Early in March, General Banks, with a large army,
was ordered to move up Red River and take Shreve-
port. At the same time General Steele was ordered
to move with his corps on Shreveport from the north
and cooperate with Banks. The plan of action as sent
out from Washington was perfect, and if it had been
promptly and properly executed, it would have been
a death-blow to the Confederacy west of the Missis-
sippi.
Banks concentrated his forces at Alexandria on Red
River and moved promptly. Steele delayed and par-
leyed with the authorities at Washington for two weeks,
and until he was peremptorily ordered to move. On
the twenty-third of March he left Little Rock with the
Second and Third divisions of his corps, and on the
twenty-fourth General Thayer moved with the First
or Kansas division, expecting to join Steele at Arka-
delphia.
The road from Fort Smith to Arkadelphia ran
through a rough mountainous country, and was three
days' march farther over the hills than by the more
level road from Little Rock. So, when Steele arrived
at Arkadelphia, not finding General Thayer there, he
pushed on with his two divisions and soon found
Price's cavalry in his front and on both flanks. Price
had concentrated his cavalry along the Shreveport
Road; and if Steele had given Thayer time to reach
Arkadelphia, he could have pushed forward to Shreve-
port or formed a junction with Banks, as he preferred.
With Thayer 's division, Steele had about twelve thou-
sand Western troops ; an army that could have marched
straight through to the Gulf, under a competent
general.
The Confederates in Steele 's front were not there
to risk a battle. They were not in condition to fight,
as they plainly showed in every skirmish. Their whole
110 KANSAS IN THE SIXTIES
game was one of bluff, and they played it for all it was
worth. If Steele had waited at Arkadelphia for
Thayer's division and then moved forward with his
divisions within supporting distance of each other,
nothing could have stopped him north of Shreveport.
But he did not do this. Before knowing the where-
abouts of the Kansas division, he strung out his other
two divisions, with his cavalry in advance, and moved
on.
During the first day out from Arkadelphia, Steele 's
rear-guard of infantry was attacked by the Confed-
erate cavalry under Colonel Shelby, and his supply
train endangered by reason of all his cavalry being in
advance, and the wide intervals between his brigades.
Fortunately General Eice, of Iowa, was in the rear
with his brigade, but while he easily repulsed the Rebel
cavalry at every point of attack, it kept his infantry on
the run from one position to another to protect the
train, which was strung out on the march.
The first attack was made from the brush on Gentry
Creek, east of Okolona, about noon of April 2, and
continued off and on until Steele reached and crossed
the Little Missouri River. On the ninth of April Gen-
eral Thayer arrived with his division and reported to
General Steele, who did not seem to know exactly
11 where he was at." He had been skirmishing with
the Rebel cavalry for seven days, but at no one time did
he have one full brigade in action. In every skirmish
his troops had driven the enemy before them until they
reached and crossed the Little Missouri River.
BATTLE OF PRAIRIE D*ANE, APRIL 11-12, 1864
War is a relic of barbarism and should be remanded
to the dark ages. A battle is either a tragedy of the
highest order, or comedy of the lowest degree. Every
soldier of our Civil War knows what this means, be-
cause he has witnessed the two extremes. In writing
EIGHTY-THIRD COLORED INFANTRY 111
of battles one should not attempt to convert tragedy
into comedy, nor comedy into tragedy. To do so would
be as contemptible as cowardice on the field of battle.
We hear occasionally of the battle of Prairie d'
Ane and of the wonderful things done on that field. I
was there with my regiment in line from start to finish.
Prairie d' Ane was an ideal battle-ground. The ascent
from the timber on the north was gradual for a mile
and a half to the centre of the prairie, and thence there
was a gradual descent for about the same distance to
the timber on the south. The centre of the field was
comparatively level, with ample room on both flanks
for the manoeuvring of cavalry.
General Steele was camped with his army in the
timber on the north side of the prairie, and General
Price's cavalry could be seen riding about on the
prairie here and there and in the edge of the timber on
the south side.
On the eleventh of April General Steele moved for-
ward, and forming his line of battle in the edge of the
timber, sent forward General Salomon's division to
attack the Kebel cavalry on the open prairie. After
skirmishing and mano2uvring with infantry against
cavalry on the prairie all afternoon to little purpose,
General Salomon moved back to the main line at the
edge of the timber, where the army stood in line of
battle until midnight, with nothing but Price 's cavalry
over on the other side of the prairie playing a game of
bluff.
The next day General Steele moved forward with
his whole force and formed a line of battle near the
centre of the prairie. He had about ten thousand in-
fantry, two thousand cavalry, and forty pieces of ar-
tillery in line, splendidly equipped and eager to move
forward. But he did not move. For six hours we stood
there in battle array, with nothing but Marmaduke's
cavalry a mile and a half away, riding about in the
edge of the timber behind a rail fence, in the corners
112 KANSAS IN THE SIXTIES
of which corn-fodder had been set up, showing a line
of impregnable breastworks.
Finally, about four o'clock in the afternoon, when
everybody had become disgusted with Steele 's conduct,
a regiment of cavalry moved forward on the right, and
General Rice's brigade of infantry advanced on the
left, and pricked the bubble; when the Eebel cavalry,
which had held Steele back for a week, scampered off
down the road, laughing in their sleeves about their
corn-stalk fortifications. Not once had they appeared
in force, nor had they shown the slightest intention of
fighting a battle, from the first skirmish east of Oko-
lona on the second of April, to the close of the spec-
tacular performance at Prairie d'Ane. But all this
was only the beginning of the disgraceful and humiliat-
ing scenes that followed one another in rapid succes-
sion from Prairie d 'Ane to Jenkins 's Ferry.
When it was definitely understood by every intelli-
gent officer in the corps, except General Steele, that
Price did not intend to fight but was simply manoeuvr-
ing to prevent Steele from forming a junction with
Banks, still he persisted in his vacillating course until
Banks was defeated.
DISGRACEFUL BETEEAT OF GENEBAL STEELE
From the battlefield of Prairie d'Ane, where no-
body was either killed, wounded, or marked absent
without leave, General Steele, suddenly becoming panic
stricken, started his army on a run over a blind road
through the swamps for Camden, sixty miles east, in-
stead of moving on south to Red River, where he could
reach Banks. Night and day that magnificent army
went splashing through the mud, and wading swamps
and streams over a horrible road running parallel with
a good road a few miles to the south.
General Price, naturally, when he heard that Steele
was retreating, sent his cavalry in pursuit. They
moved on the parallel road and had easy going, as
EIGHTY-THIRD COLORED INFANTRY 113
f
compared with Steele's forces. General Thayer's
division brought up the rear of Steele 's army.
SKIRMISH AT MOSCOW, APRIL 13, 1864
When near the village of Moscow, Arkansas, a part
of Price's cavalry under the command of General
Dockery conceived the idea of attacking General
Thayer's rear-guard. The enemy made quite a spir-
ited attack, playing the Rebel yell for all it was worth.
It so happened that my regiment was well back toward
the rear, and I was ordered to throw it into line and
protect the Second Indiana battery, which was already
in action, shelling the enemy at a distance. I simply
about-faced, threw the regiment into line, moved for-
ward in line with Rabb's battery, and stood at ready,
with six hundred and fifty loaded Enfield rifles.
Pretty soon we heard the yell, and then we saw
them coming like a bunch of Comanche Indians. Rabb
double-shotted his guns with canister, and I held my
fire until they were within close range and then a sheet
of lead and canister went into their ranks which took
the yell out of all, and the breath out of a good many.
Our rear-guard was not again disturbed, from there
to Camden. This volley, considering the ordeal through
which we had passed and were then passing, was given
with a sort of holy satisfaction. Nor was it the last so
given, as we shall see by-and-by.
General Steele's advance reached Camden on the
morning of April 15, and General Thayer's division
arrived about 11 P. M. To say that this was a dis-
graceful retreat gives the reader, and the young men
of this country who expect to be soldiers, only a vague
idea of what it really was. A major-general with an
army of twelve thousand well-trained, veteran soldiers
who had never flinched on the field of battle, moving
in support of other troops to an objective point, be-
coming panic stricken at the sight of a corn-stalk for-
tification and a few skeleton regiments, turning his
114 KANSAS IN THE SIXTIES
«
back on the enemy without a battle, and retreating for
sixty miles on a dead run, was a humiliating spectacle,
nauseating in the extreme. Steele had been ordered to
Shreveport to cooperate with Banks 's army and Ad-
miral Porter's fleet, then moving up Bed River.
General Banks, in his report on the Bed Biver ex-
pedition * says,
On the 4th of March, the day before my command was
ordered to move, I was informed by General Sherman that
he had written to General Steele to " push straight to
Shreveport."
In the same report General Banks further says,
that on the fifth of March he was informed by General
Halleck that General Steele would be directed to facili-
tate his operations toward Shreveport. Again, Gen-
eral Banks says that on the tenth of March General
Steele informed him that he ' ' would move with all his
available force to Washington, Arkansas, and thence
to Shreveport." This certainly was sufficient to sat-
isfy Banks that Steele would move on Shreveport and
hold at least a part of Kirby Smith's army back from
him.
General Steele left Little Bock with two divisions
of his army on the twenty-third of March, and reached
the Little Missouri Biver, eight miles from the town of
Washington, on April 5, an average of about seven
miles per day. Had he even then pushed straight to
Shreveport as ordered, he would have held a part of
Kirby Smith's forces from Banks, who was fighting
his way up Bed Biver with Shreveport as his objective
point.
But Steele did not see it that way. He preferred
strategy to fighting, and after manoeuvring back and
forth over the bloodless field of Prairie d'Ane for
seven days, he finally became desperate, and at the
risk of life ordered Bice's brigade to storm the corn-
"Rebellion Records, Vol. XXXIV, p. 216.
EIGHTY-THIRD COLORED INFANTRY 115
stalks and clear the field, which was done in about
twenty minutes, without the loss of a man. Having
thus become master of the situation, and considering
discretion the better part of valor, he flew to the
swamps under cover of the night, and, as already
shown, arrived in Camden right side up with care on
the fifteenth of April.
After bluffing Steele off the Shreveport Road and
starting him back on the run to a place of safety, Price
concentrated his victorious legions, including a bunch
of Choctaw Indians, and moving along on a parallel
road, went into camp a few miles west of Camden.
CHAPTEE X
BATTLE OF POISON SPRINGS — BATTLE OP JENKINS *S
FEEEY
BLACK FLAG — STEELED RETREAT, AND PURSUIT BY PRICE
AND KIRBY SMITH BATTLE OF JENKINS *S FERRY,
APRIL 30, 1864 DESPERATE FIGHTING OF THE EIGHTY-
THIRD CAPTURE OF BATTERY CAPTURE AND RELEASE
OF LIEUT. JOHN O. LOCKHART, AND HIS REPORT
CREDIT OF VICTORY DUE GEN. RICE DISPUTE AMONG
REBEL GENERALS FIGHT NEAR WEBBER 's FALLS, JUNE
17, 1864 NOMINATED FOR GOVERNOR.
ON the morning of April 17 the second day after his
arrival in Camden, Steele ordered General
Thayer to furnish an escort for one hundred and
ninety-eight forage wagons which he was sending back
through the enemy 's lines twelve miles, for corn. Gen-
eral Thayer directed Colonel Williams to take com-
mand of the escort, which consisted of the Seventy-
ninth Colored Infantry, the Eighteenth Iowa Infantry,
parts of the Second, Sixth, and Fourteenth Kansas
Cavalry, two howitzers, and a section of the Second In-
diana battery; in all about 1200 officers and enlisted
men.
When Colonel Williams left Camden with this es-
cort and 198 empty wagons, General Price was camped
twelve miles west and three miles south of the road
along which the corn was stored. Price's cavalry, of
course, was on the alert, watching the forage train
from the time it left Camden. After it reached its des-
tination, and while the wagons were scattered and be-
ing loaded, and the escort also divided so as to guard
116
BATTLE OF POISON SPRINGS 117
the wagons, Price's cavalry swooped down on them
and after a sharp engagement of an hour or so, cap-
tured the train and artillery, and forced the Federals
to retreat with a loss of one hundred and twenty-two
killed, ninety-seven wounded, and eighty-one missing.
BLACK FLAG
Of these, the colored regiment lost one hundred and
seventeen officers and men, killed, and sixty-five
wounded and brought off the field. The white troops,
infantry, cavalry, and artillery, lost five men killed,
thirty-two wounded, and seventy-three missing. This
shows beyond dispute that the wounded colored sol-
diers were murdered on the field, as directed by the
President of the Confederacy. This was known as the
battle of Poison Springs ; and a poisonous dose it was
for General Steele.
Emboldened by this easy victory, General Price
moved his lines closer around Camden, so as to pre-
vent Steele from foraging in any direction.
The next evening after the wounded of the Seventy-
ninth Colored were murdered at Poison Springs, I
called a council of the officers of the Eighty-third to
consider the matter and determine as to our future
treatment of Rebel prisoners. At that council a sol-
emn agreement was entered into :
First: That in the future the regiment would take
no prisoners so long as the Rebels continued to mur-
der our men.
Second: That no wounded Confederate should be
harmed or injured in any way, but left where he fell.
This agreement was subsequently carried out, as
far as possible in the heat of battle.
On the nineteenth of April, two days after the
Poison Springs disaster, I was ordered to take my reg-
iment, the Eighty-third Colored, with a detachment of
cavalry and a section of artillery, and escort a forage
train to a plantation about seven miles south of Cam-
118 KANSAS IN THE SIXTIES
den, where a large amount of corn was stored. While
the wagons were being loaded the Eebel cavalry drove
in my pickets and, giving the usual screech, started at
full speed in pursuit. I had two pieces of artillery and
three hundred Enfield rifles bearing directly on the
road on which they were coming; and as soon as our
pickets had passed, the artillery opened and, before
the Rebels could check their horses, I gave them a vol-
ley of musketry which brought what was left up on a
round turn, and sent them back faster than they came.
We left their wounded in the road where they fell ; and
when our wagons were loaded, we returned to Cam-
den without further interruption or loss.
On the twenty-second of April, General Steele
started Colonel Drake, of the Thirty-sixth Iowa, to
Pine Bluff for supplies, with a train of two hundred
wagons and an escort of about a thousand men and
four pieces of artillery. On the morning of the twenty-
fifth Drake was attacked at Marks Mill by General
Fagan; the train and artillery were captured, and
about half the escort killed, wounded, or missing. And
this, too, when it was known that Price had been rein-
forced by Kirby Smith with eight thousand troops.
STEELE *S EETKEAT, AND PURSUIT BY PRICE AND KIRBY SMITH
On the evening of April 26 General Steele, with his
corps, crossed the Washita at Camden and started back
to Little Eock. The next morning Generals Price and
Kirby Smith, with their combined forces, crossed the
river and started in hot pursuit. About two o'clock
on the afternoon of April 29 it began to rain ; and about
the same time Price's advance attacked General Sal-
omon's division in the rear. All the remainder of the
afternoon the skirmishing was give-and-take as both
armies moved along.
About 3 P. M. Steele 's advance reached the Saline
River and laid a pontoon bridge across at Jenkins's
Ferry. The rainfall kept steadily increasing until it
became a downpour, which continued until about mid-
BATTLE OF POISON SPRINGS 119
night. Meantime all Steele's troops, transportation,
and artillery, crossed the river except the brigade of
General Rice, the Twelfth Kansas, under Colonel
Hayes, and my regiment, the Eighty-third. There were
also left on the south side overnight a few pieces of ar-
tillery and a number of wagons mired in the mud.
General Thayer's Frontier division reached the
bridge about 5 P. M., and as soon as the road was open,
crossed over to the north side, leaving Colonel Hayes
and myself with our regiments on the south side to
guard the bridge. General Eice, with his brigade of
Salomon's division, was still skirmishing in the rear.
At dark the skirmishing ceased, and Rice moved his
troops up to within a mile and a half of the bridge and
bivouacked for the night.
The next morning, April 30, 1864, Colonel Hayes
and myself received orders to cross the river at day-
light. Before a shot in the rear had been fired that
morning, I moved up to where Colonel Hayes had
halted in the road, near the bridge, and was waiting
for his men to empty their wet guns, which had been
kept loaded during the previous night. While thus
waiting, Colonel Hayes rode back to where I was sit-
ting on my horse at the head of my regiment, and said
he would move on in a few minutes. Just as he spoke
these words we heard a few shots at the rear.
BATTLE OF JENKINS 's FERRY, APRIL 30, 1864
General Rice, whose brigade had been skirmishing
with Price's advance until dark the previous evening,
was still in our rear; and when the first shots were
fired, I told Colonel Hayes that Rice was fighting. He
thought not, and said the men were probably unloading
their wet guns, as he was doing. In less than a minute
there came a volley apparently from a company of skir-
mishers, and then it was evident that the battle had be-
gun. I said to Hayes, " I am going back," and asked
him to go also. He said no, he would wait for orders.
I rode down the line to about the centre of the regi-
120 KANSAS IN THE SIXTIES
ment and gave the command, ' * About face ! ' ' The
regiment, in four ranks, was standing in a muddy road,
and it was about a mile and a half to Rice's line of
battle. I moved through the mud at a quickstep, and
where the road would permit, at a double-quick. About
half-way back the road ran parallel with an old rail
fence, partly up and partly down. I moved along in-
side the fence, which was at the north end of a small
field ; and when about midway I halted and ordered the
men to throw their overcoats and haversacks in the
fence corners. Then I moved at the double-quick and
pretty soon began to pass the wounded coming to the
rear. By this time the musketry was rolling, and the
enemy was making a desperate effort to turn the right
flank of Rice's brigade, so as to sweep down the road
and capture the bridge before reinforcements could
arrive.
General Rice's headquarters were about two hun-
dred yards to the left of the road and three hundred
yards in rear of his line of battle. Leaving my regi-
ment moving to the front on the road, I galloped over
to where the General and his staff were sitting on their
horses, and asked where I should take position. He
looked at the regiment as it was then passing at a
quickstep, and asked, " What regiment have you? '
I replied, " The Eighty-third Colored. "
His next question was, * ' Do you think you can take
them in? "as much as to say, " Will they fight? '
I had never met General Rice before, and his last
question nettled me just a little bit. I replied, ' ' Yes,
General, I can take that regiment where any live regi-
ment will go."
He smiled and said, " Move over there on the right,
and relieve the Fiftieth Indiana, which is short of
ammunition. ' '
I moved, and without halting threw the regiment
into column of companies, and forward into line in
rear of the Fiftieth, so as to let that regiment pass to
BATTLE OF POISON SPRINGS 121
the rear. I then moved forward and formed, with my
right resting on Toxie Creek and my left protected by
a swamp, covered with a thicket of scrub trees and un-
derbrush. My line crossed the only road leading to the
bridge, and the Rebels were trying to reach that point,
the position of which was the key to the situation.
DESPERATE FIGHTING OF THE EIGHTY-THIRD
The Fiftieth Indiana under Colonel Wells, sup-
ported by the rest of Eice 's brigade, had held the posi-
tion until their ammunition was about exhausted. At
8 :30 in the morning I relieved that regiment and swung
into line, with six hundred and sixty Enfield rifles in
the hands of soldiers who knew how to handle them.
My regiment was well-drilled in every way, but in the
manual of arms, bayonet exercise, and accurate shoot-
ing, it had no superior in the Seventh Army Corps.
So when we levelled six hundred and sixty rifles at the
enemy at close range, and deliberately shot to kill,
somebody got hurt. The first line of the enemy broke
and fled the field before we had fairly begun our day 's
work.
As heretofore indicated, we were there for business
and on the alert every moment for an opportunity to
convince President Davis and his subordinates that his
"Black Flag*' order was a dangerous weapon — a
two-edged sword that could be made to cut both ways.
This first line having retreated in disorder, if not
in disgrace, I sent two companies across Toxie Creek
to help to dislodge the enemy on my right. While the
fighting north of this creek was raging with great fury,
General Churchill moved up with his division of infan-
try and formed in my front on the ground from which
Greene's brigade had just been driven. His division,
like that of General Parsons, having just returned from
the Bed River expedition to Camden, and thence by
forced marches to the battlefield, was reduced to a
skeleton, as could readily be seen. At the beginning
122 KANSAS IN THE SIXTIES
I had six hundred and sixty men in line, and no one of
Churchill's brigades exceeded that number, as shown
by their reports, but they were veterans ; and Church-
ill and Parsons were real generals.
In forming his line, Churchill threw one of his best
brigades, commanded by General J. C. Tappan, in my
immediate front, and another, under General Dockery,
in front of the detachment of our troops across the
creek on my right, while his other two brigdaes, com-
manded by General Hawthorn and Colonel Gause, were
held back as a reserve.
Up to this time I had lost but a few men and the
regiment stood like a stone wall with guns at ready,
and eagerly waiting for the word to fire. Steadily
Tappan 's line moved forward until within about a hun-
dred and fifty steps of my line, when I gave the order,
' ' Ready, aim, fire ! ' ' Instantly six hundred and sixty
balls went crashing through Tappan 's line and brought
it to a standstill. Then I gave the order to load and
fire at will, and Tappan did the same. At once it be-
came a question of skill in the handling of guns, and
power of endurance on the part of officers and men.
The line officers stood behind their companies, direct-
ing the men to level their guns accurately. I rode up
and down the line directing them to " aim low, and
give them hell."
For an hour or so the battle raged with terrific
fury, but not a man in my line wavered or lost a mo-
ment 's time, except those who were killed or wounded.
Finally Tappan 's line broke and retreated in disorder.
Immediately Hawthorn's brigade moved to the front,
and the fighting went merrily on. Hawthorn formed
about twenty paces in the rear of where Tappan 's line
stood, and that gave us a decided advantage, because
our guns were of longer range than those of the enemy.
Besides, having already broken and driven two lines
from the field, we could see no reason why we should
not dislodge another. New brooms sweep clean, and
BATTLE OF POISON SPRINGS 123
for a while Hawthorn's fresh troops made it hot for us.
But they could not withstand the steady aim of our
men, and in less than forty minutes they broke and fell
back beyond our range.
Meantime General Dockery had been reinforced by
Colonel Gause's brigade, and they were pressing our
troops on the north side of the creek. My right rested
on the south bank of the creek, and Dockery and Gause
had pressed our troops back until they (the Rebels)
were almost on a line with my regiment. Seeing the
situation, I changed front with five companies from
the left of the regiment, and throwing them forward in
line on the south bank of the creek, opened fire on
Dockery 's flank at close range and helped to send them
on a run to the rear.
Not willing to abandon his forlorn hope of captur-
ing the bridge, General Price resolved to make one
more desperate effort to break our line on the right,
and to that end he ordered General Parsons to rally
his division and make the effort. Anticipating this last
desperate attempt on the right by General Price, Gen-
eral Rice brought up his reserve force and stationed
parts of the Twenty-ninth Iowa and Forty-third Illi-
nois regiments on the right, north of the creek, and the
Ninth Wisconsin and a part of the Twenty-ninth Iowa
on my left, with my regiment on the same bloody
ground it had held all morning.
CAPTURE OF BATTERY
A Rebel battery was stationed in front of my regi-
ment, supported by a line of infantry extending from
Toxie Creek to my extreme left. Three of the Rebel
guns were in front of my centre and three farther to
the left. They opened with canister and were doing
considerable damage, when I sent the Adjutant back
to General Rice's headquarters to say to him that a
Rebel battery was in my front using canister, and I
would either have to take it by a bayonet charge or
124 KANSAS IN THE SIXTIES
fall back. Within five minutes the Adjutant returned
saying that General Bice said, " You can charge the
battery as soon as you hear cheering on the left."
While the Adjutant was reporting I heard cheering on
the left and instantly ordered the regiment to cease fir-
ing and fix bayonets. This done, I ordered the regi-
ment forward at the quickstep, and to load and fire as
they advanced.
Until the charge was ordered the regiment had been
exchanging volleys with the Rebel infantry, but when
we were fairly out in open field, and perhaps a third
of the way arross, I levelled one volley at the battery,
which brought down horses enough to hold three of the
guns and sent the other three flying from the field. The
next volley was directed toward the Rebel line of in-
fantry, which we were rapidly approaching with the
bayonet.
When we passed the battery, still at the quickstep,
there were no artillerymen left standing, and thirty-
odd artillery horses were piled up on top of each other,
which showed the death-dealing effect of our rifles. In
passing the battery, the bayonet was freely used, and
that seemed to terrorize the Rebel line of infantry,
which we would have reached with our bayonets in less
than two minutes, had they stood their ground. To say
that they ran would not convey a definite idea of how
they left that part of the field. They simply flew, and
it was not from a lack of courage, either. It was on
account of a guilty conscience. They remembered
Poison Springs — and so did we. After the Poison
Springs massacre we resolved to take no prisoners.
And yet, there lay scores of the Rebel wounded all
around us ; but we left them as they were, to be cared
for by their comrades.
After shivering the Rebel left into fragments and
sending two of Price's divisions — Churchill's and
Parsons ' — to the rear, I directed one of my captains
to take his company and run the captured guns to our
BATTLE OF POISON SPRINGS 125
rear by hand. Then I moved the regiment back to the
position from which I had made the charge. The field
over which the captured guns were being brought by
the men was muddy, and the guns were heavy to draw.
A lieutenant of the Twenty-ninth Iowa having come
on to the field with a squad of men after the battery
had been captured, came to me and asked permission
for his men to help to run the guns back, a request
which I readily granted. In consequence of this, Col-
onel Benton, of that regiment, claimed credit for hav-
ing captured the battery.
When I ordered the charge, I had only about five
or six rounds of ammunition left to each man, but I
had no time to wait for a new supply. When I returned
from the charge I had an average of about one round
to the man. I immediately notified General Rice of
this fact, and he sent a staff officer to bring up an am-
munition wagon.
CAPTURE AND RELEASE OF LIEUTENANT JOHN O. LOCKHART,
AND HIS REPORT
While waiting for the ammunition, the fighting on
our part of the line being over, one of my lieutenants,
who was back on the field looking after our wounded,
picked up a lieutenant of the captured battery — John
0. Lockhart — who had been slightly wounded, and
brought him to me, saying, " Here, Colonel, is an of-
ficer of that battery, and I don 't know what to do with
him." The prisoner had a sad, serious, woe-begone
expression on his face, and looked as though he ex-
pected to be killed. In fact, my lieutenant who brought
him to me had told him that since their troops mur-
dered our wounded at Poison Springs, we took no
prisoners.
I was otherwise engaged for the moment. My fa-
vorite saddle-horse had been seriously wounded in the
charge and I was trying to help the veterinary to stop
the effusion of blood. As soon as this was attended to,
126 KANSAS IN THE SIXTIES
I turned to the prisoner, who stood near me expecting
the worst, and said in a gentle sort of way, " Lieu-
tenant, you seem to be in bad luck to-day. ' '
He made an effort to reply, but could not articulate
distinctly. Soon, however, he regained self-control and
said, " Yes, we have been unfortunate to-day, and
here I am a prisoner of war."
" No," I said, " you are not a prisoner of war.
We do not take prisoners. Your President has placed
his army under the * Black Flag, ' in so far as our col-
ored troops and their officers are concerned, and Gen-
eral Price's troops carried out that order to the let-
ter over there at Poison Springs the other day. It was
carried out at Fort Pillow with equal severity. It was
carried out by General Forrest near Memphis, and has
been indulged in with fiendish delight in other places.
But we are not going to kill you. We are not going to
harm you, because you have been brought to me,
wounded and without arms. Nor am I going to retain
you as a prisoner. I think I can use you to a better
purpose."
Then I said to him : ' ' You see that regiment stand-
ing there at a parade rest. That is the Eighty-third
U. S. Colored Infantry. My name is Crawford, and I
am Colonel of the regiment. You see and know what
the regiment has done here to-day. You know what
became of your battery and the fate of the brave boys
who stood by their guns till the last. You know what
befell the troops in our front. You know how your
wounds shielded you and many other Confederate of-
ficers and soldiers from an irresistible wall of advanc-
ing bayonets, and you know who did it. Now I am
going to send you back through the lines, not as a
prisoner of war, but as a messenger of peace. I want
you to tell General Price, General Churchill, General
Parsons, General Hawthorn, General Clark, General
Dockery, Colonels Gause and Burns what regiment it
was that held the pass south of Toxie Creek, from 8 :30
BATTLE OF POISON SPRINGS 127
in the morning until their lines were broken and their
artillery captured at half -past twelve. Tell them fur-
ther that I accept their new flag with all that its colors
imply ; and from this day forward, so long as they bear
it aloft, by their action on the battlefield, I shall sim-
ply tell the men to remember Poison Springs.11
With this message I sent Lieutenant John 0. Lock-
hart back through the lines within thirty minutes after
he was brought to me. Whether he delivered it, I know
not, but judging from what he subsequently said, I am
inclined to think he forgot it entirely. The following
was his official report* :
HEADQUARTERS RUFFNER'S BATTERY,
CAMP HARRIS, ARK., May 9, 1864.
CAPTAIN:
I have the honor to submit to you the following report
of the part taken by one section of Ruffner's battery under
my command in the engagement with the enemy at Jenkins'
Ferry on April 30, 1864: As the brigade was advancing
upon the enemy the battery, which was in its rear, was
detained by meeting Captain Lesueur's battery, which was
coming off the field. While in this position we received an
order to follow Captain Lesueur's battery; and while in the
act of executing that order, we received another for a lieu-
tenant to proceed with one section to the scene of action.
These delays threw the section some distance in the rear, and
upon following the road upon which I last saw the brigade
advancing I saw smoke from a line in front, and supposing
it to be our own line, sought to reach it. A terrific fire from
three regiments of Federal infantry told me that we had
advanced upon the enemy. The guns were immediately pre-
pared for action by the men, who behaved with much gallan-
try ; but as the line of the enemy was so extensive he advanced
with little difficulty, capturing the guns, myself, and eight
others, three of whom were killed by negroes after they had
surrendered. After the capture I was taken across the Saline
River to the Federal hospital, from which I made my escape
on May 2nd. There were thirty-two men in the action, and
"Rebellion Records, Series 1, Part 1, Vol. XXXIV, pp. 812-813.
128 KANSAS IN THE SIXTIES
the loss is as follows: Killed, four; wounded, six; captured,
six; missing, one.
Respectfully, your obedient servant,
JNO. 0. LOCKHART,
Lieut. Euffner's Battery.
In this report, as will be observed, Lieutenant Lock-
hart says he advanced with one section and went into
battery under a terrific fire from three regiments of
infantry ; that the enemy advanced with little difficulty
capturing the guns, himself, and eight others; that
after the capture he was taken across the Saline to the
Federal hospital from which he escaped on May sec-
ond ; that he had thirty-two men in action and lost four
killed, six wounded, six captured, and one missing.
Now, as a matter of fact, he advanced with three pieces
of artillery under a long-range fire from the left wing
of my regiment, which had just driven Lesueur, with
his three guns, from the field, while my right wing was
engaging the enemy across Toxie Creek. While he
was getting his guns in position the brigade was form-
ing a line in his rear. Having succeeded in driving
Lesueur, with his three guns, from the field, on my left,
and helping to repulse the enemy across the creek, I
immediately re-formed my line, fixed bayonets, and
charged Lockhart's guns and the brigade supporting
them in the rear.
Again, in one sentence tie says he and eight others
were captured; and in another he says he lost four
killed, six wounded, and six captured. Just how he
reconciles these conflicting statements I am not able to
say; but one thing is certain, and that is that the
Eighty-third Regiment took no prisoners on that field.
His escape from the Federal hospital north of the river
must have been romantic, if not miraculous. In the
first place, we had no hospital north of the river; and
in the next, we were twenty-five miles from the Saline
River on the second of May. But the poor fellow had
to make some sort of a report ; and the one he made, no
doubt, answered the purpose. Certainly it was no
BATTLE OF POISON SPRINGS 129
worse than the reports of some of the Confederate
i Generals, who claimed that they won the battle and
drove the Union forces from the field.
After we smashed Churchill's and Parsons 's divis-
ions on our right and sent them staggering to the rear,
I was ordered to the left centre, where the battle was
still raging. Stopping a few minutes to distribute a
new supply of ammunition, I then moved on the double-
quick and throwing my regiment forward into line
opened fire with a steadiness of purpose that soon be-
gan to tell on the enemy. In front of our left and cen-
tre was Walker's division of Texas infantry which
came on to the field as Price's troops were retiring.
On account of the formation of the ground our left
wing was not aligned accurately. Some regiments
were in advance of others, and the enemy 's were in the
same condition. After firing a few volleys I advanced
my line about twenty paces, which gave me a good posi-
tion, and then it was a question of nerve and accurate
shooting.
In my front was a Texas brigade (Waul's, I think),
and for a while they stood like Spartans and fought
like demons. I had the best guns, and my men were
better drilled in the manual of arms. Besides, we had
just come from the right where we had swept every-
thing before us, which had inspired the men with con-
fidence. Our extreme left had been slightly pressed
back early in the day, but it soon moved forward and
was now holding its position easily. My regiment was
advancing two steps at each volley, and the Twenty-
seventh Wisconsin and Thirty-third Iowa on my right
were doing the same. The front rank would fire ; and
while they were reloading, the rear rank would step
to the front and fire ; and thus they advanced steadily
until the enemy began to weaken. Evidently what
they feared most was another bayonet charge, and that
was exactly what I was preparing to make, when their
line broke and retreated in disorder.
General Price's infantry, under Generals Parsons
130 KANSAS IN THE SIXTIES
and Churchill, had already left the field, and General
Kirby Smith, with Walker's division of Texas and
Louisiana infantry, was in our front, when they broke
and followed Price, leaving General Marmaduke with
a part of his cavalry to cover their retreat.
This was the ending of the battle of Jenkins's
Ferry, on April 30, 1864. The troops engaged on the
Federal side were only a part of the infantry of the
divisions of Generals Salomon and Thayer ; about four
thousand five hundred men all told; no cavalry; no
artillery. On the Confederate side, Generals Price and
Kirby Smith had the divisions of Churchill, Parsons,
Walker, and Marmaduke; apparently about eight
thousand men, consisting of infantry, cavalry, and
artillery.
Thus, as will be observed, about one-third of Gen-
eral Steele's army of twelve thousand men — which
retreated before Price's cavalry from Prairie d' Ane
to Camden, and before Price and Kirby Smith from
Camden to the Saline Eiver — stopped, fought, and
defeated the combined armies of these magic generals,
whose very names seemed to be a holy terror to General
Steele.
CREDIT OF VICTORY DUE GENERAL RICE
To General Samuel A. Bice, of Iowa, commanding
a brigade of Salomon's division, more than to any
other officer of the Seventh Army Corps, is due the
credit of the victory at the battle of Jenkins's Ferry.
He and his staff of gallant young officers selected the
battleground, opened the battle, and held their position
against terrific onslaughts until reinforcements ar-
rived. I was the first to reach him, and I did not arrive
one minute too soon ; for one of his regiments, the Fif-
tieth Indiana, which blocked the road to the bridge —
the key to the situation — was short of ammunition
and could not have held the position many minutes
longer. I relieved this gallant regiment, and have al-
ready described the thrilling events that followed.
BATTLE OF POISON SPRINGS 131
Of the officers and enlisted men killed and wounded
on each side in this bloody affair, I must refer the
reader to the Eebellion Records. My regiment lost in
killed and wounded eighty-one men and officers, be-
sides about forty slightly wounded who did not leave
the line and hence were not reported. When charging
the Rebel battery, three sergeants, bearing the regi-
mental flag, fell, and a fourth carried it in triumph
from the field. In the same charge the horses of the
regimental officers — field and staff — all went down.
But we took the battery, broke the line of support, and
left many of the enemy dead and wounded on that part
of the field.
The battle closed about two o'clock in the after-
noon ; and from our left centre, where I then stood, not
one of the enemy could be seen on his feet or on horse-
back in any direction. They had left the field in con-
fusion, and retreated beyond the hills in their rear;
while our line from right to left stood firm as the i i Pil-
lars of Hercules. ' ' General Rice having been wounded,
and our troops being short of rations, we did not pur-
sue the enemy.
After we had rested quietly on our arms for quite
a while, one of General Salomon's staff officers came
dashing down the line like a whole herd of mad ele-
phants (the first time I had seen him on the field that
day), and told me in broken English that his army
would remain in line of battle for just thirty minutes,
and then if the " damn Rebels " did not return and re-
new the fighting, his troops would cross the river. He
said further, that I was to remain on the field with
my regiment and bring up the rear. I told him that it
seemed to me as though we ought to go the other way ;
that we had won a complete victory and should take
advantage of it. But he thought differently, and
dashed away to execute his orders.
At the time designated the several regiments coun-
termarched and headed for the bridge. I moved back
132 KANSAS IN THE SIXTIES
a short distance, halted, and sent men all along where
our lines had stood to pick up such of our wounded as
might have been overlooked. When this special work
was completed, which consumed at least two hours, and
all the other regiments had left the Held, I recalled the
detachments and moved on toward the bridge. I was
in the rear of all our troops, ambulances, and wounded,
who were able to walk, but moving slowly. When I
reached the field where the men had left their over-
coats and haversacks early in the morning, I halted
and gave time to get them.
While we waited for the men, another staff officer
from Steele's headquarters came splashing back
through the mud with his eyes a-glare and nostrils dis-
tended (having snuffed the battle from afar), and
wanted to know why ' * in hell ' ' I did n 't hurry up. He
further said: " If you keep fooling along this way,
Price and Kirby Smith will hop on to you in less than
fifteen minutes with fifteen thousand men, and we shall
lose our pontoon bridge. ' '
I said, " Yes, that is exactly what I want. They
hopped on me this morning, but they didn't get the
bridge. If they come along now, I think I shall turn
it over to them and stop this disgraceful retreat."
Giving me up as lost, he leaped his horse over a rail
fence near-by and flew for that immortal rubber bridge.
Having recovered our traps, I moved slowly on down
to the bridge, arriving there just in time to cross be-
fore dark.
Some of the Confederate officers in their reports of
this battle declare that they came on to the field early
in the afternoon and drove our troops across the river.
That is not true. I did not leave the field until about
4 P. M., and then I lingered along from there to the
bridge — about two miles — hoping and expecting that
the Confederate cavalry would follow. But they did
not do so.
On arriving at the river I received an order from
BATTLE OF POISON SPRINGS 133
General Thayer to destroy the bridge. Leaving two
companies on the west side and sending two mounted
scouts back on the road as a picket, I crossed over on
the bridge with the remainder of the regiment and
commenced the destruction of the bridge under torch-
light. At the proper time I called in the scouts,
brought over the other two companies, and remained
there until the bridge was destroyed and sunk. One of
the scouts whom I sent back fired one shot at an imag-
inary object, which took me back over the river and put
the two companies on that side in line. But the alarm
being false, I soon returned. If there was another shot
fired on that side of the river after the battle closed,
I did not hear it, and I certainly was there all the time
until dark.
I am thus particular in stating these facts, because
General Price and some of his officers in their reports
(as published in the Eebellion Eecords) did not tell
the truth. Certainly they have enough material on
which to base accurate and flaming reports of events,
incidents, and spectacular displays, from Prairie d*
Ane to Camden, without trying to claim credit where
credit is not due. Generals Price and Kirby Smith and
their armies were defeated in a fair, square, open field
fight at Jenkins 's Ferry, and every Confederate officer
and soldier in that battle knows the fact. And it was
their own fault, for, with the troops Kirby Smith
brought over from Eed Eiver, they had almost twice
as many men on the field as we had. Again, they did
not seem to have any definite plan of action or coopera-
tion among their troops.
If they had a continuous line of battle from the be-
ginning to the close of that fight, I failed to see it. As
far as I could observe, and I had a good eye and an ac-
curate field-glass, General Price would send in one
small brigade, and when that was knocked out, he
would send another, and so on. At least that is what
was done in my front, except when Churchill 's division
134 KANSAS IN THE SIXTIES
was pushed forward; and even his flank was left un-
protected. But it is not for me to question the skill or
criticise the action of officers on the other side, even
from a military standpoint; because,
" One can't sometimes most always tell,
How Blucher came and Napoleon fell."
From Jenkins's Ferry the army moved leisurely
to Little Rock, arriving there on the fourth of May.
All things considered, the expedition was disastrous;
not from any fault of the troops, but for want of a
competent commander. In this we were exceedingly
unfortunate. We had a splendidly equipped army of
about twelve thousand well-trained veteran soldiers.
We had two division commanders and many brigade
commanders, some of whom were of the very best, but
the Major-General commanding was a gigantic failure.
Had General Thayer, General Carr, General Eice, Col-
onel Cloud or any one of a dozen officers in the corps
been in command, he would have been thundering at
the gates of Shreveport before a gun had been levelled
at General Banks 's army.
But enough, perhaps, has been said of this disas-
trous expedition to impress upon the minds of young
officers in our army the importance of, first, knowing
themselves ; and second, qualifying themselves to meet
and overcome any and every obstacle in their pathway,
real or imaginary. After remaining at Little Eock a
few days, General Thayer 's division crossed the Ar-
kansas Eiver, and marching back to Fort Smith, went
into camp to reflect on the art of war in Arkansas.
At Fort Smith we found things about the same as
they were when we started on the Eed Eiver expedi-
tion. Major T. J. Anderson, Adjutant-General of the
district — and, by the way, the most efficient Adjutant-
General in the Department — had his district well in
hand and everything running smoothly from a military
standpoint. In fact during the absence of the Frontier
division, he had suppressed the Eebellion in Northwest
BATTLE OF POISON SPRINGS 135
Arkansas by mustering the male population into the
Union Army, and administering the oath of allegiance
to the women and children. At least, our reception on
returning from the swamps of Red River indicated as
much. For a while peace reigned in Arkansas.
, DISPUTE AMONG EEBEL GENERALS
General Price went back to Camden to divide the
spoils and settle a dispute with Kirbj Smith. It seems
they fell out on the field at Jenkins 's Ferry, and quar-
relled — each censuring the other for interfering,
changing, and countermanding his orders. General
Smith thought that Price should have turned the Fed-
eral right and forced his way to the bridge, and Gen-
eral Price contended that he should have been rein-
forced by the Texas troops before he was driven from
the field. Then again, the question of jealousy cut
quite a figure, until they broke up in a row, when Lieu-
tenant-General Kirby Smith took Walker's division
and a part of Price 's infantry and returned to Shreve-
port, leaving Major-General Price to shift for himself.
General Price remained at Camden with his infan-
try and a part of his cavalry stationed at different
places in Southwest Arkansas and the Indian Terri-
tory. General Shelby soon started north to work his
way with cavalry and artillery back to Missouri ; Gen-
erals Marmaduke and Cabell were rounding up de-
serters; General Cooper was moulding bullets and
violating the prohibition law over at Caddo Gap ; and
General Stand Watie was up on the Spavin making
war-bonnets, and grinding scalping knives for his
Indians.
While all these military equations and unknown
quantities were being worked out by Price and his
Generals, General Steele was sleeping on post at Little
Rock; and the Seventh Army Corps was scattered up
and down the Arkansas Valley from Fort Gibson to
Pine Bluff.
Early in June, Cooper and Stand Watie concen-
136 KANSAS IN THE SIXTIES
trated their forces in the Choctaw Nation and began
to show signs of life. Stand Watie with his brigade of
one thousand Indians, a regiment of Texas cavalry,
and two pieces of artillery, had moved up to Webber 's
Falls on the Arkansas River, to intercept any Govern-
ment boats that might be passing.
FIGHT NEAR WEBBER 's FALLS, JUNE 17, 1864
On the fifteenth of June a steam ferry-boat was
loaded with supplies and started up the river for Fort
Gibson, with an escort of a lieutenant and twenty men
from the Twelfth Kansas Infantry. When the boat
arrived within a few miles of Webber's Falls, it was
attacked and captured by Stand Watie. When at-
tacked, the boat was thrown to the north side of the
river; and the escort, after firing a few shots, waded
ashore and made their escape. The lieutenant with a
part of his men finally returned to Fort Smith and re-
ported to General Thayer, who immediately ordered
me with two regiments of infantry, one company of
cavalry, and a section of artillery, to the scene of the
disaster.
I received the order at nine o 'clock on the night of
the sixteenth, and the next day at 1 P. M. I captured
Stand Watie 's pickets — six Texas cavalrymen, with
arms and horses — at the Sans Bois Eiver, thirty-five
miles from Fort Smith and five miles from Stand
Watie 's camp. The river at this crossing was narrow
and deep ; and finding neither a bridge nor a ferry-boat,
I brought over the prisoners in a canoe and swam their
horses over; then I moved the command to a bridge
three miles up stream. On arriving at this crossing I
found the bridge-flooring torn up, and the Texas cav-
alry dismounted and partially fortified on the other side
of the river. The river at that point was also narrow
and deep, and the Texas troops behind their hastily pre-
pared breastworks were within easy reach of our En-
field rifles.
COLONEL SAMUEL J. CRAWFORD
(At 28 years of age)
BATTLE OF POISON SPRINGS 137
I immediately threw the Eighty-third Regiment
forward into line, ran up a section of artillery, and
opened fire with both at the same time. The enemy's
breastworks consisted of logs and bridge-flooring,
which had been hastily thrown together, and behind
which they had taken shelter. For a while the Texans
hugged the ground like lizards, and fired as though
they were shooting birds in the trees. We had them
where they could neither lie still, nor retreat with
safety. Pretty soon our artillery got its bearing and
began to dismantle the fort. One shell went whizzing
across the river and struck the bridge-flooring, piled
up in front of a bunch of Rebels, and sent them whirl-
ing back to Dixie. That was the beginning of the end.
Soon the remainder broke and went dodging through
the timber from tree to tree under a hot fire of canister
and rifle balls. I hastily repaired the bridge, crossed
over, and followed them until dark, when they disap-
peared and, so far as I know, never returned.
When Stand Watie captured the boat, two days be-
fore this skirmish, all his chiefs, headmen, and war-
riors loaded themselves and their ponies to the guard
with booty, and each on his own trail struck for his
wigwam in the distant forest. Stand Watie, like the
hen that hatched the quails, was left alone on the bleak
prairie with no troops ' * to love, and none to caress. ' '
They all took French leave, and did not return in time
to muster for pay at the close of the Rebellion. That
was the only instance during the Civil War where a
whole brigade of valiant troops was placed hors de
combat by a sternwheel ferry-boat and a few boxes of
hardtack.
The object of this expedition having been accom-
plished, I returned to Fort Smith and devoted my time
to drilling and preparing the regiment for inspection
and grand review. General Marcy, Inspector-General
of the army, was on a tour, inspecting the troops west
of the Mississippi, and I wanted to be in readiness for
138 KANSAS IN THE SIXTIES
him. On the third of July he arrived at Fort Smith ;
and on the fourth he and Generals Curtis, Blunt, and
Thayer inspected the division and held a grand re-
view. In his report to the Secretary of War, General
Marcy paid my regiment a compliment of which any
officer of the army, in time of war, had a right to feel
proud.
NOMINATED FOB GOVEKNOB
Soon after this grand review and inspection, Gen-
eral Thayer, our division commander, informed me that
he was going to organize a cavalry expedition to Red
River, and that he wanted me to command it. I told
him that while nothing would please me more, I was
afraid it could not be done ; that several of the cavalry
colonels ranked me, and they would not submit to it.
After discussing the question fully, we dropped it for
the time ; but soon thereafter, he or some other person
(I knew not who) drew up a letter to the President,
which was extensively signed by colonels and other of-
ficers of the division, asking my promotion to the rank
of Brigadier-General, and I was subsequently assured
from Washington that I should have the first vacancy.
But before the appointment was made I was nomi-
nated by the State Convention at Topeka as the Repub-
lican candidate for Governor.
This opened a new field for me if I accepted the
nomination. I preferred the army. I loved the army.
I was finishing a four years' course in the art of war,
and in a few months would have been graduated from
the cannon's mouth. The successful army officer, as a
general rule, must necessarily be a man of truth, integ-
rity, and courage. The successful politician, as a gen-
eral rule, must necessarily be " all things to all men."
But this is only the general rule. Some of our politi-
cians are true as the needle to the pole. After consid-
ering the question carefully, I finally made up my mind,
under quite a pressure, and notified the State Central
Committee that I would accept the nomination.
CHAPTER XI
THE PKICE KAID THROUGH MISSOURI
RETREAT FROM JEFFERSON CITY CONCENTRATION OF FED-
ERAL TROOPS AT KANSAS CITY INJURIOUS COURSE OF
NEWSPAPER BATTLE OF THE LITTLE BLUE, OCTOBER
21, 1864 COUNCIL OF WAR, SATURDAY NIGHT, OCTOBER
22, 1864 BATTLE OF WESTPORT, OCTOBER 23, 1864
RETREAT TOWARD FORT SCOTT.
MEANTIME, General Price, of Confederate fame,
had concentrated his forces in Southern Arkan-
sas, and was moving north for a raid through Missouri.
He crossed the Arkansas Eiver at Dardanelle on Sep-
tember 7, 1864, almost under the guns of General
Steele 's forces, in the vicinity of Little Rock, and moved
northward by way of Batesville to Pocahontas, where
he arrived on the sixteenth of September. At this
place General Price reorganized his invading army into
three divisions, commanded respectively by Generals
Fagan, Marmaduke, and Shelby. From Pocahontas,
General Price, with his army as reorganized, moved
north to Pilot Knob where General Ewing was sta-
tioned with about fifteen hundred Federal troops, —
cavalry, infantry, and artillery. In the afternoon of
September 26, Ewing 's pickets were driven in ; and on
the morning of the twenty-seventh a hard, stubborn
fight began. Ewing held his position during the day,
but being greatly outnumbered, he deemed it advisable
to fall back to the railroad between Rolla and St. Louis,
which he succeeded in reaching without serious loss.
From Pilot Knob General Price continued his march
northward with Jefferson City as his objective point.
139
140 KANSAS IN THE SIXTIES
While Price was passing west of St. Louis, in the direc-
tion of Jefferson City, General Rosecrans, command-
ing the Department, got busy and began concentrating
his troops at available points with the view of catching
the old fox. When it was definitely known that Price
was moving on Jefferson City, General Rosecrans or-
dered Generals McNeil and Sanborn to move from
Rolla with their brigades on parallel lines with Price,
and reinforce General E. B. Brown, commanding the
district of Central Missouri, with headquarters at Jef-
ferson City. General Price having passed to the west
of St. Louis, General Rosecrans dropped General A. J.
Smith, with a part of the Sixteenth Corps, in his rear.
On the sixth of October General Price crossed the
Osage River, and on the seventh he reached and tried
to invest Jefferson City. From the Osage, Colonels
Gravely and Phillips, with their cavalry, contested the
enemy's advance at every available point, and sent a
good many of them to the hospital, and others to the
happy hunting-grounds. Early on the morning of the
seventh General Fisk arrived and assumed command
of the Federal forces, with General Brown's Missouri
troops, reinforced by the brigades of McNeil and San-
born. Fisk and the whole command stood ready, if not
eager, to welcome their wayward neighbors, with
" bloody hands to hospitable graves."
During the afternoon General Price and his lieu-
tenants moved about beyond the range of rifles, viewing
the entrenchments, the forts, and the men behind frown-
ing guns, until they became weary. Staring them in
the face was a condition more serious than they had en-
countered at Pilot Knob. In fact, General Price had
reached the north pole of his perilous expedition, and
for the first time since leaving Camden, he saw that he
was standing on slippery ground. He was afraid to
risk a battle. He dared not cross the river or move
eastward. General A. J. Smith, with an army of
trained veterans, was advancing from the south, and
PRICE RAID THROUGH MISSOURI 141
Generals Curtis and Blunt were rapidly concentrating
their forces and the Kansas State troops at Kansas
City. On whatsoever side he turned he could see only
dark war-clouds gathering thick and fast around him.
To use a slang phrase, he was " up against it," and his
only hope of escape was through the blundering stupid-
ity of his adversaries.
EETEEAT FROM JEFFERSON CITY
During the first day of his discontent at Jefferson
City, October 7, General Price's division and brigade
commanders played their usual game of bluff at a dis-
tance, and occasionally advanced and tried the Federal
lines, but invariably fell back under a galling fire to
places of safety. Late in the evening Generals Fagan
and Shelby moved up with their divisions and formed
with a flourish as though they were going to smash
things the next morning. But when the next morning
came, they were not there. During the night the divi-
sions of Fagan and Marmaduke hit the road leading
toward the setting sun, and early on the morning of
the eighth Shelby's division followed in the wake.
Scarcely had the enemy left the field when the Fed-
eral cavalry under Colonel Phillips was on their heels
and flank. Price, with Fagan 's division and their train,
moved off on the road leading southwest to Eussellville,
and thence northwest to Boonville; Marmaduke, with
his cavalry, covered all the roads leading in a south-
westerly direction, evidently with the intention of mis-
leading the Federal cavalry; Shelby pushed west on
the California road; but they all encamped for the
night in the vicinity of Russellville.
Early on the morning of the eighth General Pleas-
anton arrived in Jefferson City and assumed command
of the Union forces. All afternoon of the eighth the
brigades of Phillips and Gravely hung heavy on the
flanks of the enemy, fighting most of the time, until it
was too dark to see how to shoot. That night General
142 KANSAS IN THE SIXTIES
Sanborn reached the front, and at daylight the next
morning drove in the enemy's pickets and had a sharp
engagement with Ma-rmaduke 's cavalry in and through
Eussellville. From there General Price moved his
army to Boonville, where he remained for two days,
when he was routed and driven in the direction of Lex-
ington, with General Sanborn heavy on his rear.
CONCENTRATION OF FEDERAL TROOPS AT KANSAS CITY
Meantime Generals Curtis and Blunt, and the Gov-
ernor of Kansas, were concentrating their forces at
Kansas City, and General A. J. Smith, with a part of
the Sixteenth Corps, was moving forward with a stead-
iness of &tep that bespoke the soldier. When it be-
came known that General Price was forging his way
through Missouri in the direction of Kansas, General
Thayer at Fort Smith gave Colonel Cloud and myself
leave of absence with instructions to report to General
Curtis at Kansas City. On the twelfth of October we
left Fort Smith with a light escort ; and on arriving at
Fort Scott, I received a despatch, of which the follow-
ing is a copy :
WYANDOTTE, October 15, 1864.
COLONEL CRAWFORD,
Fort Scott :
General Blunt desires you to come up immediately and
report to him at Hickman Mills, Mo.
C. S. CHARLOT,
Major and Assis't Adjutant-General.
I received this despatch on the evening of the seven-
teenth and at one o'clock on the morning of the twen-
tieth Colonel Cloud and I reported to General Curtis
at Independence, and were immediately assigned to
staff duty.
General Blunt, at the time, was fighting Price's ad-
vance at Lexington, and I could not reach him that day.
Besides, some twenty-odd regiments of untrained Kan-
sas State Militia were in the vicinity of Kansas City,
on both sides of the State line, and it was the desire of
PRICE RAID THROUGH MISSOURI 143
General Curtis to have Colonel Cloud and myself assist
Governor Carney and General Deitzler in bringing
them to the front, and getting them into position and
condition to assist in checking Price in his onward
march to Kansas City and Southern Kansas. But, for
political reasons, our services were respectfully de-
clined. General Deitzler, Major-General of the Kansas
State Militia, thought he had his troops well organized
and could handle them without assistance, " in case
they were needed at the front." How well he could
handle them was very clearly demonstrated that after-
noon and the succeeding two days. Nor was it the fault
of the men. The truth is, they were not handled at all.
They all stood ready to move and do their duty; but
unfortunately some of their officers of higher rank took
fright at that imaginary thing called a State line.
Governor Carney, Commander-in-Chief of the State
Militia, and his brigade commanders, except Colonel
Blair, were inexperienced in military affairs, and had
no conception of the dangers that confronted them and
the State of Kansas ; nor of their duty and responsibil-
ity. Martial law had been declared in Kansas — that
is, the laws of the State had been suspended — and
everything, including Governor Carney and his State
Militia, was under the military rule and control of
Major-General Curtis. But Governor Carney and his
Militia generals did not grasp or comprehend the situa-
tion, nor realize the consequences of their inexcusable
conduct.
INJURIOUS COURSE OF NEWSPAPER
The Governor, at the time, owned a newspaper which
was freely circulated among his Militia ; and up to the
time when General Blunt was fighting and falling back
before Price's advance from Lexington to Independ-
ence, Governor Carney's paper — under scarecrow
headlines — was telling the Militia and people of Kan-
sas that Price was not in Missouri ; that the whole thing
144 KANSAS IN THE SIXTIES
was a political scheme of Senator Lane to get the
Militia of the State called out for political purposes;
that under the laws of Kansas (which has been sus-
pended) the Militia did not have to cross the State line ;
and other similar statements, calculated to discourage
and demoralize the State troops and render them of
little use when the enemy appeared.
If, at the proper time, General Curtis had arrested
a half-dozen politicians in the Militia camps and sent
them to Fort Leavenworth in irons, and at the same
time shot one or two Militia brigadiers from the can-
non's mouth, he could have had an invincible army of
fifteen thousand men — infantry, cavalry, and artillery
— in line, confronting Price when he crossed the Blue
on the twenty-second. But instead, most of them
were away at a distance where they could be of no
assistance.
Price was there in a trap, with the Missouri River
on his right, Pleasonton in his rear, and General A. J.
Smith on his left. If Curtis had had his troops in
proper position, the Price raid would have ended then
and there. But Curtis 's troops were not in the proper
position. Three brigades were scattered from Olathe
to Leavenworth — ten, twenty, and thirty miles away
-with Governor Carney's newspaper and some of his
Militia generals telling the troops that Price was not
coming. General Curtis made a faint effort to concen-
trate his troops at Kansas City, but his orders were
disobeyed with impunity ; and as a result, Price slipped
through the lines with his shattered forces, after they
had been hammered to a frazzle and driven into a cor-
ral by Pleasonton 's forces — mostly State troops of
Missouri.
Any person who cares to do so can readily find a
distinction with a difference, by contrasting the con-
duct of Pleasonton and his brigade commanders with
that of Carney, Dietzler, and their brigadiers. To a
soldier the comparison is odious, except in so far as
PRICE RAID THROUGH MISSOURI 145
Colonel Blair was concerned. He was a courageous of-
ficer, and handled his brigade with skill. But of the
others — their conduct speaks for them. Nor does the
blame for such conduct attach to their regimental or
line officers ; nor to the men composing the regiments
and battalions. They all stood ready to obey orders
and do their duty, the same as Colonel Blair's brigade;
and the regiments, battalions, and batteries of Colonels
Veale, Snoddy, Montgomery, Colton, Hagan, Murdock,
Her, Ross, Burns, and others, who crossed the State line
and faced the enemy with the courage of true soldiers.
No, the trouble was not with the men, line officers,
or regimental commanders, but lay at the tent-door of
General Curtis, who allowed Governor Carney and his
plumed political brigadiers to scatter the seeds of dis-
cord and mutiny all over the camp. They all knew that
Price was approaching Kansas with a large army, and
their whole object and aim seemed to be to demoralize
the Militia and baffle Curtis in his every attempt to con-
centrate his troops and be prepared to meet Price and
his army. Hence, I say that such mutineers should
have been put in irons or tried by a drumhead court-
martial, and shot before breakfast. But neither was
done. They were allowed to go on playing their game
among the troops with impunity; and before it was
concluded the enemy's guns were thundering at the
gates of Kansas City.
That they all had positive proof that Price with a
large army was in Missouri and rapidly approaching
Kansas, will be observed by reading the despatches,
proclamations, communications, orders, and reports of
General Kosecrans and others, as shown by the Re-
bellion Records, published in full by the War Depart-
ment. General Curtis was a grand good man, and
meant well ; but as a general in command of an army
in the field, like General Fred. Steele, he fell short, and
in the face of an enemy was helpless as a child.
At Kansas City we were face to face with a condi-
146 KANSAS IN THE SIXTIES
tion. Price was advancing with an army of at least
nine thousand veteran soldiers, beside two or three
thousand recruits and bushwhackers. To meet this
force General Curtis had four thousand veteran sol-
diers and fifteen thousand State Militia. Price's
army had been marching and fighting from Pilot Knob
to Jefferson City, and thence retreating and fighting to
Lexington, Missouri. His horses were jaded, and many
of them unserviceable ; and his men were tired, ragged,
hungry, and short of ammunition. Curtis 's troops
were fresh, well mounted, armed, and equipped with
everything essential ; and yet in the crisis he hesitated,
declined to move out and face Price on the open field.
General Blunt, with a brigade of cavalry, met
Price 's advance at Lexington on the nineteenth and con-
tested every inch of the ground from there to the
Little Blue River, in order to give General Curtis time
to concentrate his forces and put them in line for action.
BATTLE OF THE LITTLE BLUE, OCTOBER 21, 1864
When General Blunt reached the Little Blue he
made a stand with one brigade of cavalry and two sec-
tions of artillery, and held Price in check until about
noon of the twenty-first, when he was ordered to fall
back to the Big Blue. His position at the Little Blue
was well chosen, and had he been reinforced with one
brigade of infantry and another battery, he could have
held the crossing until Grant reached Appomattox.
There was no other bridge on that stream over which
Price could have crossed his train and artillery en
route to Independence. But instead of reinforcing
Blunt, General Curtis ordered him to fall back, and he
obeyed orders.
While Blunt was holding Price's advance in check
at the Little Blue, General Pleasonton's division was
slashing him right and left in the rear. But when Blunt
retired, Price's engineers repaired the bridge, and the
next morning his troops and trains crossed over and
PRICE RAID THROUGH MISSOURI 147
moved forward on the road to Independence, followed
closely by Pleasonton 's force.
Before reaching Independence, Fagan's division,
witn the trains, took the left-hand road leading to
Westport, leaving Marmaduke to hold Pleasonton's
troops in check as best he could. From the Little Blue
Pleasonton drove Marmaduke 's division steadily
through the fields, over hills, and around hedge-fences
to Independence, and on at a run down to Rock Creek,
and up almost to the muzzles of Curtis 's guns at the
Kansas City crossing of the Big Blue. From here,
Marmaduke, defeated in every engagement during the
day, and finding himself almost surrounded at night,
retreated southward and rejoined Price and Fagan,
who had thrown up their job and started home.
Had General Curtis been equal to the emergency,
Price never could have escaped from the trap he was in.
While Blunt was holding the crossing at the Little
Blue on the twenty-first, Curtis should have brought
forward all his State troops and stationed a heavy
brigade of infantry, with artillery, at each crossing of
the Big Blue, leaving Blunt to strike with the cavalry
where he could do the most good. Then with Pleason-
ton in the rear and A. J. Smith on the flank, Price,
crippled as he was, could not have escaped. But un-
fortunately, General Curtis was not in a fighting mood.
After Pleasonton had defeated Marmaduke 's troops
on the twenty-second and started them on a run for
Dixie, General Curtis abandoned the Big Blue and fell
back on Kansas City, preparatory to retreating to Fort
Leavenworth. From some cause the old gentleman lost
his nerve, and while Pleasonton was hammering the life
out of Marmaduke within hearing of the guns, and
Blunt was fighting Joe Shelby at the upper crossings
of the Big Blue, with a handful of men at each, General
Curtis, without consultation, was moving his ammuni-
tion and baggage trains across the Kansas River,
headed for Leavenworth.
Of this movement General Blunt and his officers
148 KANSAS IN THE SIXTIES
knew nothing, and at first no one believed it; but later
the report was confirmed, and it created consternation
and no little indignation among the officers at the front
who happened to hear of it. General Blunt immediately
sent a staff officer to Curtis with the request that he
bring back the ammunition wagons and troops, and
also the horses of Colonel Blair's brigade, which, with-
out his knowledge, had been sent across the Kansas
Eiver. General Curtis had most of Deitzler's division,
at least five thousand State troops, back near the State
line, which should have been sent to the front early in
the morning. If that had been done, the battle would
have been fought on Saturday, the twenty-second, by
the combined forces of Curtis and Pleasonton. But
that was not done. General Curtis seemed to have lost
his head at the critical moment, and ordered his troops
to the rear instead of the front.
COUNCIL OF WAR, SATURDAY NIGHT, OCTOBER 22, 1864
Late on Saturday afternoon General Curtis con-
sented to call a Council of War, to meet at the Gillis
House in Kansas City that night. It was then known
by all who were at the front during the day that Price
had abandoned all hope of entering Kansas City on the
Independence Eoad, and that his only hope was to
come in from the southeast on the Westport Road.
To guard against this remote possibility, General Blunt
stationed his division accordingly, and at the same time
directed me to assist in the formation of a second line
on the road to Kansas City, with the regiments of the
Kansas State Militia, which were within reach.
When this work was completed, I rode over to the
Gillis House and found a lively Council of War in suc-
cessful operation. General Curtis, General Blunt, Gen-
eral Jas. H. Lane, and a number of staff officers and
volunteer aides were present. General Curtis, the
Major-General commanding, was strenuously insisting
upon crossing the Kansas River with the remainder of
PRICE RAID THROUGH MISSOURI 149
his troops and retreating to Leavenworth. That, of
course, meant the destruction of Kansas City and the
devastation of Southern Kansas. It also meant an
abandonment of General Pleasonton and his troops,
who had driven Price to the very muzzle of our guns ;
and worse, it meant the brand of cowardice indelibly
stamped upon soldiers who had never flinched or fal-
tered in the face of an enemy.
Every officer present at the council, except General
Curtis, felt absolutely certain that even without Pleas-
onton 's division, we had men enough to meet Price on
the open field or anywhere else; and to listen to talk
about retreating was galling in the extreme. Finally,
about two o'clock on Sunday morning it became un-
bearable, when some of the officers took General Blunt
to the other end of the parlor and told him that there
was but one thing for him to do, and that was to place
General Curtis in close arrest and assume command.
General Blunt replied by saying : ' * Gentlemen, that is
a serious thing to do. ' '
" Yes," we replied, " but not so serious as for this
army to run away like cowards and let Price sack Kan-
sas City and devastate Southern Kansas."
In reply to this, General Blunt asked the question,
' l Will the army stand by me ? '
" Yes," we replied, " and we will stand by you
while making the arrest."
The General then said that something must be done,
and done quickly ; whereupon we all walked back, and
standing in front of Curtis, while Senator Lane was
still arguing with him, General Blunt said in no uncer-
tain tones: " General Curtis, what do you propose to
do? "
General Curtis looked up and, seeing determination
depicted on resolute faces, thought a moment and said,
' ' General Blunt, I will leave the whole matter to you.
If you say fight, then fight it is. ' '
Blunt 's reply was, " I say fight, and we will con-
150 KANSAS IN THE SIXTIES
centrate the troops on the prairie south of Westport. * '
Then requesting Curtis to have the troops, ammunition
train, and cavalry horses brought from over the river,
he asked me to go to the front with him.
BATTLE OF WESTPORT, OCTOBER 23, 1864
At three o'clock on the morning of October 23, the
Council of War terminated, and General Blunt and I
mounted our horses and started for the front. We
arrived at Westport while it was yet dark, and the Gen-
eral immediately sent staff officers in haste with or-
ders to the various brigades and batteries of his divi-
sion to move promptly to the prairie a mile southeast
of Westport. A part of his division, with the First Col-
orado battery, was already in Westport ; and others, as
fast as they arrived, were pushed forward across Brush
Creek and formed in line of battle.
The first line was composed of the Eleventh, Fif-
teenth, and Sixteenth Kansas Cavalry, a battalion of
Missouri cavalry under Captain Grover, the Second
Colorado Cavalry, and a section of McLain's battery.
The second line, or reserve force, was composed of
State troops, infantry, and dismounted cavalry. In a
short time after Blunt 's lines were formed, Shelby's
division of Price's army appeared on the farther side
of the prairie, about a mile distant. Blunt immediately
opened on Shelby with McLain's two guns, which were
answered by two guns from the other side of the field.
Instead of having two guns in action, and a half-
dozen regiments of State Militia in line as a reserve, he
should have had twelve guns, McLain's and Dodge's
full batteries, ten howitzers, and twenty regiments of
State troops — most of which had been scattered about
three or four miles in the rear by Generals Curtis and
Dietzler, where they were of no earthly benefit.
We all knew (or should have known) that Price was
trying to get out of a trap with his troops and train.
We all knew that Pleasonton's troops were hammering
PRICE RAID THROUGH MISSOURI 151
him desperately in the rear and on his left flank; and
we had good reason to know that Shelby 's division was
thrown out on Price 's right flank that morning to hold
Curtis back and prevent his forming a junction with
Pleasonton. All these things General Blunt and his
officers who were at the front knew; and every regi-
ment present was ready at any moment to charge
Shelby's battalions scattered as they were over the
field.
While MeLain's two guns were exchanging shots
with Shelby's guns, there was an occasional clash or
skirmish on different parts of the field, which invariably
resulted in our troops driving the enemy back. In fact,
every movement showed that Shelby was not there to
fight. He had no consecutive line of battle. His regi-
ments were scattered about over the prairie where they
would show to best advantage ; and when Blunt should
have made a dash and cleared the field, he ordered his
troops, in response to an order from General Curtis,
who was on the roof of the Harris Hotel in Westport,
to fall back to the north side of Brush Creek among
bushes and underbrush where it was impossible to
handle cavalry.
This was an unfortunate movement, and led to con-
fusion and the loss of valuable time. What Shelby
thought of it while he was hanging by the gills, of
course, we had no way of knowing. But what many of
the officers on our side thought, was plainly expressed
in terse language. The retrograde movement at that
particular time was inexcusable. If Blunt had been
left alone and properly supported, he would have
driven Shelby from the field in the early morning, arid
been on Price 's right flank cooperating with Pleasonton.
But General Curtis did not see it that way, and his
word was law.
When Blunt 's cavalry moved back to Brush Creek,
Shelby moved his brigades farther out on the prairie,
and was playing his game of bluff to the queen's taste.
152 KANSAS IN THE SIXTIES
But finally, Blunt returned to the field with his cavalry,
and then there was something doing. He moved to the
right with the Eleventh and Fifteenth Kansas, and
Grover's battalion of Missouri cavalry, and directed
me to look after the Sixteenth Kansas and Second Col-
orado Cavalry on the left.
In front of these two regiments, about four hundred
yards distant, was a brigade of Shelby's troops on the
open prairie. When I came up, both lines were using
their carbines in a random sort of way, but so far
apart that neither could hurt the other. I instantly
ordered the commanding officers of the two regiments
to sling their carbines and draw pistols, which was done
in one time and two motions. I then ordered the
bugler to sound the advance and the charge. With a
yell the men of two regiments dashed forward, and in
less than three minutes the Rebels were flying at full
speed over the prairie with our men in close pursuit.
About the same time General Blunt made a charge
on the right, driving everything before him, until we
cleared the field and Shelby was in full retreat. This
was what I wanted Blunt to do when Shelby first ap-
peared on the prairie, early in the morning, but he
thought best to wait until the enemy was more fully
developed, lest we dash into Price's main force. He
had been cautioned by General Curtis, who was still on
the roof of the Harris Hotel in Westport, a mile in the
rear.
EETEEAT TOWAED FORT SCOTT
As soon as Shelby was driven from the field, Gen-
eral Curtis came to the front, booted, spurred, and
ready to follow whithersoever Price might lead. While
Shelby was playing hide-and-seek with him, Price, with
his train and the remainder of his army, was moving
rapidly in the direction of Fort Scott, with Pleason-
ton still hanging like a bulldog on his flank and rear.
Leaving most of his own troops behind, General Curtis
PRICE RAID THROUGH MISSOURI 153
with a light heart and escort, dropped in the wake,
Overtaking Pleasonton in the afternoon, he asserted his
rank and assumed command.
General Blunt, with a part of his division, pushed
south on the line road to Little Santa Fe, where they
all stopped and camped for the night. There, while
General Curtis was resting, sleeping, and writing flam-
ing despatches, General Price was moving at a run to
save his demoralized army. After halting at Little
Santa Fe from 4 P. M. Sunday until 6 A. M. Monday,
General Curtis resumed the pursuit, with Blunt 's divi-
sion in advance. But Price's forces had been moving
rapidly all night, and on Monday morning when Blunt
started, they were twenty-odd miles away.
On Monday evening Curtis halted at West Point,
Missouri, to let the men and animals rest and get some-
thing to eat. Price camped that night at the Trading
Post in Kansas, about twenty-five miles north of Fort
Scott — our depot of army supplies. After resting
some four hours, General Curtis resumed the pursuit
with Pleasonton 's division in advance. This offended
Blunt, because Price was now on Kansas soil, and he
thought the Kansas troops should be at the front.
Nevertheless, about 8 P. M. General Pleasonton
moved, with Sanborn 's brigade in advance. Curtis, in
his ambulance, followed in rear of Sanborn until two
o 'clock the next morning — Tuesday, October 25 —
when, receiving a message from Sanborn to the effect
that he had driven in the enemy's pickets and found
a strong force stationed on the hills in his immediate
front, General Curtis halted and sent back orders to
Sanborn to remain where he was until daylight and
then move forward. It was then about 3 A. M. and
quite dark and drizzling.
Colonel Blair, who had previously been in command
of a brigade of Kansas State troops, and whose home
and family were in Fort Scott, came up at this time,
and he and I were discussing the situation when Curtis
154 KANSAS IN THE SIXTIES
despatched his last order to Sanborn. Hearing this
order, Colonel Blair was very much depressed, and said
to me : * * Fort Scott is gone. ' ' I said ' * No, we yet have
two chances to save the town. First, let 's try and get
Curtis to send General Blunt with his division around
to the west, and strike Price at daylight while crossing
the river near his camp, which he must do when he
moves. Second, if Blunt fails to get there in time, then
let Curtis have him fiercely assail Price 's rear with his
fresh troops and horses, and not let up until he forces
a battle."
These two propositions Colonel Blair and I sub-
mitted to General Curtis about three o'clock on the
morning of October 25. To the first he shook his head
and said, l ' No, I will not separate the forces. ' ' To the
second, he said, " Yes, I am going to fight the battle
over on the prairie south of the river early in the
morning." Blair and I both knew what that meant.
Every officer in both armies (except Curtis) knew that
Price was not going to stop and fight a battle if he
could possibly avoid it. His army had been retreating
and fighting from the time he passed Jefferson City,
and he was in no condition to fight a battle. Besides, he
was necessarily out of rations and forage, and Fort
Scott was his last hope.
We told General Curtis all these things, and more,
but we could not move him from his preconceived idea
that Price was going to stop and wait for him. Fail-
ing in everything else, we told him that Pleasonton's
men having been in the saddle for thirty days or more,
flanking and fighting to keep Price first out of Jeffer-
son City and then out of Kansas City, were well-nigh
exhausted ; that his horses were jaded, and on that ac-
count we thought he ought to order Blunt 's division to
the front. But for some unexplained reason he even
declined to do that.
Then Blair and I turned away from him and agreed
to go to the front at daylight and do what little we
PRICE RAID THROUGH MISSOURI 155
could to save Fort Scott. General Price's troops
crossed the river during the latter part of the night,
except one brigade left back to check Sanborn's ad-
vance. Colonel Blair and I reached the front before it
was quite light, while Sanborn was engaging Price's
rear guard north of the river. After crossing his train
and artillery, Price had chopped down trees on both
banks to delay Curtis. This, however, did not seriously
impede the progress of the cavalry, and Sanborn's
brigade, followed by other brigades, soon crossed over.
From the Marais des Cygnes, Price moved south on
the old military road leading to Fort Scott, with Shel-
by's division in advance, followed by the train and the
divisions of Fagan and Marmaduke in the order men-
tioned. Two separate Brigades — General Tyler's and
Colonel Jackman 's — were on the flanks, and Colonel
Nichols and a horde of recruits were out as freebooters
scouring the country for something to eat.
When Marmaduke 's rear-guard crossed the Marais
des Cygnes a regiment was formed in line about six
hundred yards south of the ford. Colonel Blair and I
reached and crossed the river in the rear of the Second
Arkansas Cavalry, which regiment was immediately
deployed and moved forward to within about four hun-
dred yards of the Eebel rear so formed. The two lines
were facing each other on the open prairie with about
the same number of men in each.
The Second Arkansas belonged to Pleasonton's
division, and on that account I hesitated about inter-
fering, but rode forward to the rear of the regiment,
where I was met by Adjutant Remiatee, who had for-
merly been with me in the Second Kansas Cavalry.
With the Adjutant I rode to the left of the regiment to
get a better view of the situation and see if the enemy
had a reserve force upon which to fall back.
Finding the field absolutely clear, I told Remiatee
his regiment must charge and break that line. Riding
back to about the centre of the regiment we met the
156 KANSAS IN THE SIXTIES
commanding officer, and I ordered him to make the
charge ; this he did without hesitation, and I stayed with
him until the enemy broke and fled from the field. The
Rebels had two howitzers in their line, which we should
have secured, but for a mistake of one of the captains
in ordering a halt at the wrong time. But the regiment,
considering the condition of their horses, made a most
gallant charge, and deserved great credit for it.
I do not know the name of the regimental com-
mander who made the charge, but presume it was John
E. Phelps, Colonel of the regiment. This rear-guard,
when routed, did not stop until the men overtook Mar-
maduke's main column, which was wending its way
over the prairie in the direction of Mine Creek.
Within a few minutes after this charge was made,
Major Hopkins, with a battalion of the Second Kansas
Cavalry, and Captain Green, with a battalion of the
Second Colorado Cavalry, came up with their men and
horses in good condition and joined in the pursuit. We
gained rapidly on Marmaduke's forces, until he was
compelled to throw a regiment in line to hold our ad-
vance in check, while he was forming his division for
action,
CHAPTER XII
PEICE JS RETREAT AND ESCAPE
BATTLE OF MINE CREEK — CHARGE OF COLONELS PHILLIPS
AND BENTEEN GEN. PRICE 's REPORT BATTLE OF THE
LITTLE OSAGE, OCTOBER 25, 1864 GEN. SHELBY 's RE-
PORT PRICE DEMORALIZED THE PURSUIT HIS
ESCAPE — THE LAST DITCH.
THE battle of Mine Creek was one of the most im-
portant of all the battles ever fought on the soil
of Kansas. General Price with an army of about nine
thousand ragged, hungry soldiers, after a wild, reck-
less raid through Missouri, was trying to make his es-
cape through Kansas and back to the dismal swamps
of the Sunny South. He had been fighting and running
for thirty consecutive days and his deluded followers
were crying for bread.
Price was on his last legs, and his men were on their
uppers. At Fort Scott, twenty miles away, was a Fed-
eral depot of army supplies ; and to reach and capture
that post was the ambition of his military life. To
keep him out of Fort Scott was the determination of the
Federal troops, including Colonel Blair, Colonel Cloud,
and myself. We three had previously fought Price,
Marmaduke, Shelby, and Fagan at Wilson 's Creek and
on other bloody fields. We had been ordered from an-
other department to assist in keeping these bold riders
out of Kansas, and we could not afford to linger in
the rear and let Fort Scott go down.
On the field at Westport we became satisfied that
Shelby was short of ammunition. In charging Marma-
duke 's rear early that morning I knew his men were not
157
158 KANSAS IN THE SIXTIES
prepared to fight, because the regiment making the
charge did not lose a single man. Of course, the enemy
had a limited supply, but not enough to hold a pursuing
army in check ; and I was thoroughly convinced of that
fact when Marmaduke was forming his line of battle
north of Mine Creek.
His rear guard formed on top of the hill or eleva-
tion in his front, to hold the Federal troops back while
he was forming his main line. But his rear-guard did
not stand on the hill a minute before the guns of our
advancing troops. They broke and fell back on Mar-
maduke's main force, which was then rapidly forming
in two lines, parallel with the creek. When Marma-
duke's rear-guard broke, we deployed two companies of
cavalry as skirmishers and pushed them forward to
within about four hundred yards of the enemy, and
held the remainder of the advance in line as a reserve.
As our skirmish line advanced, Marmaduke opened
fire with two pieces of artillery. I then sent Sergeant
J. P. Hiner, of Company A, Second Kansas, back to tell
General Blunt that the enemy had halted and formed in
line of battle, and asked him to bring his division to the
front as quickly as possible. When Sergeant Hiner
started, I called in the skirmishers and ordered Major
Hopkins and Captain Green to move their battalions
over in front of Marmaduke 's extreme left, so as to give
Blunt an open field when he arrived.
I knew he was furiously mad about having been put
in the rear at West Point the previous evening, when
his men and horses were comparatively fresh, but I had
no doubt about his coming to the front quickly when he
heard that Price was in battle array on Kansas soil.
After waiting a short time, which seemed to be longer
than it was, Sergeant Hiner returned with the informa-
tion that General Blunt was still roaring and declined
in most vigorous terms to take any further part. For
the exact language used by the General on that occa-
sion, I must refer the reader to Mr. J. P. Hiner of
PRICE'S RETREAT AND ESCAPE 159
Paola, Kansas, late Treasurer of Miami County ; but it
was terse and vigorous. Nothing like it is found in any
of the chapters of the New Testament.
It was a sad disappointment to Colonel Blair and
myself. For thirty minutes we had been picturing
such a cavalry scene as is seldom witnessed on the
field of battle. The formation of the ground — a
broad, smooth, down-grade prairie — was perfect.
Marmaduke had formed his lines on the farther side
with a skirt of timber along the creek in his rear.
Fagan's division was in line on the other side of the
creek about a quarter of a mile in rear of Marmaduke.
When Sergeant Hiner returned and reported that
Blunt was not coming, he and I rode back to the summit
of the divide and meeting Col. Blair, held a brief council
of war. Marmaduke 's lines were in our immediate
front and Fagan's troops in full view on the farther
side of the creek. I said to Blair that we must break
those lines north of the creek with a charge, and force
a general battle ; else Price would be in Fort Scott that
night.
CHABGE OF COLONELS PHILLIPS AND BENTEEN
Just then two of Pleasonton's brigades, commanded
by Colonels Phillips and Benteen, were coming up the
hill, or rather a gentle ascending slope, with Phillips in
advance to the right of the road and Benteen in his left
rear on the opposite side. After consulting a few min-
utes while these brigades were advancing, Hiner and I
rode down, and, meeting the commanding officer of the
nearest brigade (who I afterwards learned was Colonel
Phillips of Pleasonton's division), I explained to him
the position of the enemy, and suggested that he form
his brigade and move forward in position for a charge.
I told him that I would see the commanding officer of
the other advancing brigade and ask him to do likewise.
While Colonel Phillips was forming his brigade and
moving forward to the summit of the elevated plateau,
160 KANSAS IN THE SIXTIES
directly in front of Marmaduke's left and centre, I
rode over and explained to the commanding officer of
the other advancing brigade — Lieutenant-Colonel Ben-
teen — the situation of the enemy 's lines, and asked him
to form for a charge on the left of Phillips 's brigade,
then in line under a raking fire from the Rebel artillery.
In forming his line Colonel Benteen made a mistake
by throwing his brigade left-front into line and leaving
a gap between his right and Phillips 's left — plainly
visible to Marmaduke. Benteen should have thrown
his rear regiment right-front into line and filled up the
gap. • His line as formed extended far beyond Marma-
duke's right flank, while Phillips 's right did not reach
quite as far as Marmaduke 's left.
The lines of Phillips and Benteen, when formed,
faced almost due south, while Marmaduke's first line
conformed to a bend in the creek, which on his right
rear extended north several hundred yards from a due
east-and-west line. That, of course, brought Benteen 's
line proportionately nearer to Marmaduke 's right than
was Phillips 's right to Marmaduke's left. Besides, it
brought Marmaduke's right almost opposite Benteen 's
centre and that was why one of his regiments had to
move from left to right of his brigade after the charge
had been sounded.
By reason of Marmaduke's lines extending in a
northeasterly direction from left to right, Phillips 's
brigade had to ride in the charge some two hundred
yards farther than Benteen 's before the crash came;
and again, Phillips 's brigade, while in line waiting for
Benteen to form, was under a galling fire from the en-
emy's artillery, which was kept up from the moment he
ordered or sounded the charge until his line was within
fifty paces of Marmaduke's first line.
Both brigades advanced to the charge about the
same instant, but Benteen having less distance to ride,
struck and staggered Marmaduke 's extreme right while
Phillips was yet advancing ; but within two minutes the
PRICE'S RETREAT AND ESCAPE 161
additional distance was covered and the clash of sleel
rang aloud all along the line. In good time Major Hop-
kins with his battalion dashed in and closed the gap be-
tween the two brigades. For twenty minutes, officers
and men, Feds and Confeds, were all mixed in a life
and death struggle. The roar of musketry, the rattle
of rifles and pistols, the clash of sabres, and the shrieks
of the wounded, created a scene that was perfectly
awful.
Steadily the gallant Union soldiers cut their way
through the red glare and over a wall of guns and bat-
teries of artillery, until the shouts of victory were heard
over and above the din of battle. Slowly the enemy's
lines melted away, and one by one their Generals, Col-
onels, and battalions laid down their arms and passed
to the rear as prisoners of war. My sword was not laid
down, but in the thick of the fight it was shivered in
pieces on a gun that protected the head of a fighting
Rebel.
Within thirty minutes after his lines were broken,
Marmaduke and the flower of his division were prison-
ers, and the remainder of his troops were fleeing as
though they expected the devil to take the hindmost.
They threw away their guns and fell over each other
while crossing Mine Creek. General Fagan, seeing
Marmaduke 's disaster, halted and formed his division
in line of battle about a quarter of a mile to cover the
retreat of those who might escape.
Phillips and Benteen, with their men whose horses
were serviceable, and Major Hopkins, with a light bat-
talion of the Second Kansas, and Captain Green, with
two companies of the Second Colorado, followed the re-
treating Eebels across the creek and captured prisoners
within range of Fagan 's line.
When the broad prairie between the creek and
Fagan 's line was cleared of fleeing Rebels, we began
forming a line south of the creek and in Fagan 's
immediate front for a second charge. I threw
162 KANSAS IN THE SIXTIES
Major Hopkins and Captain Green with their battal-
ions on the right. Phillips 's men that had crossed the
creek were rapidly forming in the centre, and Benteen 's
men who had crossed lower down were coming into line
on the left.
We already had in our new line about one thousand
men, and were waiting for two or three companies of
Benteen 's brigade that were coming at a gallop. A sec-
ond charge would have been made in less than ten min-
utes, had it not been for an order from General Pleas-
onton to remain where we were until further orders
were received. On receipt of this order, I naturally
supposed that he was coming to the front with the
remainder of his division to take advantage of the de-
moralized condition of the enemy produced by the first
charge.
Marmaduke's division, for fighting purposes, had
been utterly destroyed and all the officers and soldiers
at the front knew that fact. That the demoralization
would extend to Fagan's division, we had good reason
to believe ; and on that account we were preparing for
a second charge. After the order to halt was received,
the remainder of Benteen 's men who were south of the
creek came up and completed the formation of the new
line.
Then and there, we had about twelve hundred and
fifty men, burning with zeal and flushed with victory,
facing about an equal number of Price's demoralized
troops on the open prairie ; and yet we were not allowed
to move. For twenty minutes the men sat erect in their
saddles waiting impatiently for the order to advance.
While thus waiting, the enemy in our front broke from
line into column and left the field in haste. Our line
was then broken up, and the officers and men rejoined
their respective commands.
While Phillips and Benteen were exterminating
Marmaduke 's division by a most gallant and desperate
cavalry charge, and while their men, reinforced by the
PRICE'S RETREAT AND ESCAPE 163
Kansas and Colorado battalions, were in line awaiting
the order for a second charge, the three major-generals
in command of the army and the divisions remained at
the rear with most of their troops and artillery, seem-
ingly indifferent about what was going on at the front.
One entire division — except two light battalions,
and two brigades of the other division, all commanded
by generals — was held back in the rear while two
young colonels with their brigades forged their way
to the front and destroyed Marmaduke's division. Had
these two colonels with their light brigades been sup-
ported by the generals and their troops, as they should
have been, Price and his army would have been elimin-
ated from the Confederate equation before the sun went
down on that memorable day.
GENERAL PKICE's KEPOBT
I was in the immediate front from daylight in the
morning until eleven o 'clock at night, and I know who
did the work and deserves the credit. To prove that
the Rebel army under General Price was shattered into
fragments and utterly demoralized by the charge which
resulted in the capture of General Marmaduke, his ar-
tillery, brigade commanders, and the flower of his divi-
sion, I quote an extract from Price's official report as
follows :
WASHINGTON, ARK., December 28, 1864.
GENERAL :
. . . On reaching Little Osage River I sent forward
a direction to Brigadier-General Shelby to fall back to my
position in rear of Jackman's brigade for the purpose of
attacking and capturing Fort Scott, where I learned there
were 1,000 negroes under arms. At the moment of his
reaching me I received a despatch from Major-General Mar-
maduke, in the rear, informing me that the enemy, 3,000
strong, were in sight of his rear, with lines still extending,
and on the note Major-General Fagan had indorsed that he
would sustain Major-General Marmaduke. I immediately
ordered Brigadier-General Shelby to take his old brigade,
164 KANSAS IN THE SIXTIES
which was on my immediate right, and return to the rear as
rapidly as possible to support Major-Generals Fagan and
Marmaduke. I immediately mounted my horse and rode
back at a gallop, and after passing the rear of the train I met
the divisions of Major-Generals Fagan and Marmaduke
retreating in utter and indescribable confusion, many of them
having thrown away their arms. They were deaf to all
entreaties or commands, and in vain were all efforts to rally
them. From them I received the information that Major-
General Marmaduke, Brigadier-General Cabell, and Colonel
Slemons, commanding brigades, had been captured, with 300
or 400 of their men and all their artillery (5 pieces) . . .
STERLING PRICE,
Major-General, Commanding.*
BRIG. GEN. W. R. BOGGS,
Chief of Staff, Shreveport, La.
This shows what might have been done if the Mine
Creek charge had been followed by a second charge,
which we were ready to make when the fatal order to
halt was received.
For two hours I remained with the battalions of
Major Hopkins and Captain Green, where we halted
until General McNeil came up with his brigade and re-
quested me to go to the front with him. He, like Phil-
lips and Benteen, was full of fight and fire. He inspired
his men to deeds of daring by the example of his own
heroic valor. The Kansas battalion, a part of which
had formerly been his body-guard, was ordered to the
front as the advance guard. On approaching the brakes
of the Little Osage, about six miles south of Mine Creek,
McNeil struck General Shelby's brigades, which had
been called back from the front to save the wreckage of
Price 's army, remaining after the onslaught of Phillips
and Benteen in the morning.
BATTLE OF THE LITTLE OSAGE, OCTOBER 25, 1864
Shelby, by all odds, was the skilful general of
Price 's army, and his division was the last of the bold
*Eebellion Kecords, Vol XLI, Part I, pp. 636-637.
PRICE'S RETREAT AND ESCAPE 165
raiders who flaunted the flag of defiance as they rode
into Missouri; who routed General Ewing at Pilot
Knob, baffled Bosecrans at St. Louis, drove the Feder-
als into their entrenchments at Jefferson City, and
frightened Curtis at Kansas City. Mannaduke was the
next ; and Fagan, as a general, was passable.
At the Little Osage Shelby, with his war-scarred vet-
erans, was brought to the rear as a forlorn hope. He
formed on the undulating ground a mile north of the
Osage in the edge of the timber, and awaited the com-
ing of McNeil 's brigade. He had not long to wait. With
a whirl McNeil 's brigade went into line and then stead-
ily moved forward until the lines locked in the embrace
of victory or death.
After a most terrific struggle Shelby 's line began to
waver, when one of McNeil's regiments in my imme-
diate front made a sudden dash, instantly followed by
the other regiments with their commander roaring like
a lion. For a few minutes the men of the two contend-
ing forces wielded their weapons without fear, favor,
or affection. Step by step Shelby's men yielded, and
finally fled in confusion to the river with the Federals
close on their heels.
After crossing the river, Shelby rallied a part of his
men and tried to make a stand ; but it was brief. Again,
one mile south of the river, Shelby rallied all his forces
with a part of Fagan 's division, and prepared for an-
other desperate struggle. His position here was well
chosen and his line difficult of approach. At places the
sides of the hill were steep, rugged, and covered with
underbrush ; but slowly McNeil 's men worked their way
to the top, and then for about forty minutes blows were
given and blows received.
It was a square stand-up-and-knock-down fight. But
finally, Shelby's men, as they had done at the engage-
ment north of the river, reeled and staggered to the
rear, leaving their wounded and two pieces of artillery
on the field. This loss, with the six guns captured at
166 KANSAS IN THE SIXTIES
Mine Creek, rendered Price helpless in so far as his
artillery was concerned.
From this last engagement south of the river,
Shelby fell back to the junction of the Fort Scott and
Marmiton roads, followed closely by General McNeil.
On reaching this point late in the afternoon, Price with
his train and a host of unarmed soldiers and recruits,
had taken the left hand or Marmiton Road leading back
into Missouri, and halted about a mile from the junc-
tion, on the open prairie. Shelby formed the fragment
of his division at the junction of the roads, and was dis-
lodged and driven back on Price's rear by McNeil's
brigade in less than thirty minutes.
GENERAL, SHELBY 's REPORT
Everything indicated that the enemy was out of
ammunition, and his last stand was purely a game of
bluff. In his pathetic report of these engagements, on
that memorable day, General Shelby shows the desper-
ate condition of Price's army at the close of the last
onset. He says :
HEADQUARTERS SHELBY'S DIVISION, December — , 1864.
COLONEL :
. . . Day and night the retreat was continued until
the evening of the 25th, when my division, marching leisurely
in front of the train, was ordered hastily to the rear to pro-
tect it, while flying rumors came up constantly that Marma-
duke and Cabell were captured, with all their artillery.
Leaving Colonel Jackman with his brigade to watch well my
left flank and guard the train, I hastened forward with
Thompson's brigade and Slayback's regiment to the scene of
action. I soon met beyond the Osage River the advancing
Federals, flushed with success and clamorous for more vic-
tims. I knew from the beginning that I could do nothing
but resist their advance, delay them as much as possible, and
depend on energy and night for the rest.
The first stand was made one mile north of the Osage
River, where the enemy was worsted; again upon the river-
hank, and again I got away in good condition. Then taking
PRICE'S RETREAT AND ESCAPE 167
position on a high hill one mile south of the river, I halted
for a desperate struggle. The enemy advanced in over-
whelming numbers and with renewed confidence at the sight
of the small force in front of them ; for Captains Langhorne
and Adams and Lieutenant-Colonel Nichols with their com-
mands were ahead of the train on duty. The fight lasted
nearly an hour, but I was at last forced to fall back.
Pressed furiously, and having to cross a deep and treach-
erous stream, I did not offer battle again until gaining a large
hill in front of the entire army, formed in line of battle,
where I sent orders to Colonel Jackman to join me imme-
diately. It was a fearful hour. The long and weary days
of marching and fighting were culminating, and the narrow
issue of life or death stood out all dark and barren as a rainy
sea. The fight was to be made now, and General Price, with
the pilot's wary eye, saw the storm-cloud sweep down,
growing larger and larger and darker and darker. They
came upon me steadily and calm. I waited until they came
close enough and gave them volley for volley, shot for shot.
For fifteen minutes both lines stood the pelting of the leaden
hail without flinching, and the incessant roar of musketry
rang out wildly and shrill, all separate sounds blending in a
universal crash. The fate of the army hung upon the result,
and our very existence tottered and tossed in the smoke of
the strife. The red sun looked down upon the scene, and the
redder clouds floated away with angry sullen glare. Slowly,
slowly my old brigade was melting away. . . .
Jos. 0. SHELBY,
Brigadier-General, Commanding Division.*
LIEUT. COL. L. A. MACLEAN,
Assistant Adjutant-General, Army of Missouri.
As Shelby says, it was for them " a fearful hour."
The fate of their army, as he verily believed, hung upon
the result. But nobody was " tossed in the smoke " of
battle, and nobody on our side, in so far as I ever heard,
was either killed, wounded, or turned up missing. It
was simply a lively skirmish. Shelby had an irregular
line formed out on the prairie; and General McNeil
moved his brigade forward at a steady walk and fired
"Rebellion Records, Vol. XLI, Part I, pp. 659-660.
168 KANSAS IN THE SIXTIES
two or three volleys. Shelby's men fired a scattering
volley, and like the "red clouds, floated away with an-
gry sullen glare. ' '
Then McNeil dismounted his brigade. I rode back
about a mile and, meeting General Curtis, told him that
it was all over ; and in my opinion General Price was
waiting to surrender. I further told him that two
brigades of Pleasonton's troops had smashed the divi-
sions of Marmaduke and Fagan to pieces and captured
their artillery in the morning, and that General Mc-
Neil had just completed the destruction of Shelby's
division, leaving Price helpless and stranded over there
on the prairie.
Price 's army was then halted in full view on the left-
hand road leading to Missouri. General Pleasonton
had just passed with his division, except McNeil's
brigade, and taken the road to Fort Scott ; and General
Blunt, with his division, which had not fired a shot dur-
ing the day, was then passing around McNeil on the
same road. Curtis immediately sent staff officers for-
ward to each of these Generals, ordering them to halt
and form on McNeil's brigade, which was within half
a mile of Price 's helpless troops. But neither of them
paid the slightest attention to Curtis 's order.
General Curtis, finding himself impotent and help-
less, directed General McNeil to remain at the junction
of the roads during the night ; and when Blunt 's divi-
sion had passed, he dropped in the rear and rode away
to Fort Scott, leaving McNeil with a light brigade
within close striking distance of Price's army.
Seeing Curtis 's army move off on the road toward
Fort Scott, Price gathered up his fragments and limped
off over the divide to the Marmiton River and went
into camp. McNeil camped on the ground where the
last skirmish had taken place, and I remained with him
until 11 P. M., when I took a light escort and rode into
Fort Scott.
PRICE'S RETREAT AND ESCAPE 169
PEICE DEMORALIZED
That was the end of the Price Eaid, in so far as
fighting was concerned. It was the end of Price 's army
as a factor in the Confederacy. Like the serpent of old,
with its fangs drawn and spine dislocated, it dragged
its weary body over the divide and down to the sluggish
waters of the Marmiton River, where it writhed in
agony until 2 A. M. During the night General Price
issued an order of which the following is a copy :
HEADQUARTERS ARMY OF MISSOURI,
CAMP No. 52, October 25, 1864.
GENERAL ORDERS,
No. 22
I. The army will march to-morrow at 2 A. M. in the
following order: First, Major-General Fagan's division;
second, army and ordnance train ; third, Major- General Mar-
maduke's division; fourth, Brigadier-General Shelby's divi-
sion. Major-General Fagan will detach a brigade to march
on the right flank of the train. Colonel Tyler's brigade will
march on the right flank of the train in rear of the brigade
of Major-General Fagan's division.
II. The army train, with the following exceptions, will
be parked under directions of division commanders and
burnt before leaving camp : First, one-half the army head-
quarters wagons; second, there is allowed to each division
headquarters one wagon, with ambulance for commanding
officer; third, one wagon for brigade headquarters; fourth,
one wagon for each brigade; fifth, one medical wagon for
each division; sixth, all the ordnance wagons absolutely
required; seventh, all the ambulances and carriages (except
buggies, which are to be burnt) will be turned over to the
division quartermaster for the use of the division surgeon, to
be used only for conveying the sick and wounded; eighth,
all the serviceable stock to be retained by the division and
brigade quartermasters for use as may be required; ninth,
no enlisted man under any circumstances to have a led horse.
No white man between the ages of seventeen and fifty to be
used by officers for this or any other purpose beyond his
military duty.
III. Private families travelling with the army will be
170 KANSAS IN THE SIXTIES
allowed such spring vehicles only as are absolutely requisite
for their transportation.
IV. The inspector-general and chief quartermaster will
examine the train on the march and assist in carrying out
this order.
By command of MAJ. GEN. S. PRICE:
L. A. MACLEAN,*
Lieutenant- Colonel and Assistant Adjutant General.
Price was now out of Kansas and back in his own
State, which his mob of bushwhackers, recruits, de-
serters, and camp-followers had, with his knowledge,
plundered from one end to the other. To these red-
handed assassins and renegades were largely due the
disasters that befell the divisions of Marmaduke,
Fagan, and Shelby. Such cattle must necessarily have
embarrassed the fighting troops at every turn in the
road. From this dismal camp on the Marmiton, the
remnant of Price's shattered forces, after destroying
their baggage and burning their wagons, started early
and travelled late. On the retreat they were burdened
only with wounds, bruises, and sad recollections.
At the same time the buccaneers, bushwhackers, de-
serters, and camp-followers, who had been gathered in
and harbored by General Price — to his everlasting
discredit — moved off in other directions in search of
innocent and defenceless victims whom they could rob
and murder in their zeal to help to establish the South-
ern Confederacy.
General Price, with his real soldiers, passed on down
by way of Carthage, Neosho, Pineville, and Maysville
to Cane Hill, where he stopped a few days to take stock
and count noses. By this time his regular troops, offi-
cers, and men were thoroughly demoralized and clam-
oring for furloughs and leaves of absence. As shown
by the subsequent reports of his officers and the evi-
dence submitted to a Court of Inquiry and published in
the Kebellion Eecords, Price and his army while on
*Eebellion Eecords, Vol. XLI, Part IV, pp. 1013-1014.
PRICE'S RETREAT AND ESCAPE 171
their raid in and through Missouri, degenerated into a
lawless mob with no discipline whatever.
From Cane Hill they scattered to the four winds,
and Price's army became a thing of the past, " gone
but not forgotten." His troops, like the Macedonians
on their return from India, wanted to go home; and,
unlike the Macedonians, they went. Two of his gen-
erals, with skeleton commands, stuck to the hull until
it reached the south bank of the Arkansas, when Fagan
marched east, Shelby west, and Marmaduke stayed
back as our guest.
General Price, like Napoleon from Moscow, faced
the November storms and jogged along southward,
wrapped in thoughts of the wreckage occasioned by his
indiscretion. He may have been an honest man and a
good citizen, but he was not a skilful general. He had
no conception of the formation of a line of battle, nor
did he know how to handle troops in action. If he had
a division composed of three or four brigades, instead
of throwing his whole force into line and crushing his
opponent, he would send in his brigades one at a time
and see them slaughtered in detail ; and the same with
his divisions — just as he did at Mine Creek, the Little
Osage, and Jenkins 's Ferry. I saw his troops in action
at Wilson's Creek, Jenkins's Ferry, Westport, Mine
Creek, and the Little Osage, and in none of these en-
gagements did he have more than one-third of his force
in action at one time.
But he was not the only general of the Civil War
who lacked many of the essential elements of general-
ship. There were others. Many major-generals in
both the Union and Confederate armies, appointed
through political influence, were absolutely incapable
of handling troops or even of taking care of themselves
on the field of battle. Nor did this apply exclusively
to major-generals. There were still others, and all
such should have resigned or been dismissed the serv-
ice when their incompetency was clearly established.
172 KANSAS IN THE SIXTIES
But fortunately the political drones, artful dodgers,
and abject cowards were not all on one side.
General Price finally reached his old stamping
ground in Southwest Arkansas with a handful of his
hungry, bedrabbled followers, and immediately entered
upon a defensive campaign involving his reputation
as an officer and a gentleman. To settle all disputes,
charges, and counter-charges among Confederate of-
ficers, growing out of the raid through Missouri, a
Court of Inquiry was established, the proceedings of
which may be found in the Rebellion Records.
Late in the afternoon of October 25, when the fight-
ing was all over, and General Price's army stood
helpless out on the prairie within speaking distance,
half -clad and without ammunition, artillery, food, or
forage, Generals Curtis, Blunt, and Pleasonton came up
and without halting moved past on the road to Fort
Scott, leaving General McNeil and his brigade without
support, if Price and his troops had been in condition
to fight.
Instead of moving around McNeil on the west, en
route to Fort Scott, they should have moved around
Price on the east and halted long enough for him to
surrender. That would have saved the Generals a deal
of trouble and their tired troops and jaded horses un-
told hardships.
THE PURSUIT
On the morning of October 26, Generals Curtis,
Blunt, and Pleasonton held a powwow in Fort Scott to
consider the question of further pursuit. Generals
Grant, Halleck, and Rosecrans were exceedingly anx-
ious to have Price and his army captured. But the
three major-generals conducting the pursuit were an
inharmonious set. No one would respect the orders
or wishes of the other, and Rosecrans was eighty miles
away, powerless to bring order out of chaos.
Curtis 's incompetency was plainly visible to Blunt
PRICE'S RETREAT AND ESCAPE 173
and Pleasonton ; Blunt 's rebellious — if not mutinous
- conduct from the Marais des Cygnes to Fort Scott
was observed by Pleasonton and understood by Curtis ;
and Pleasonton 's deliberate disobedience of Curtis 's
orders, in leaving the field and moving into Fort Scott,
was apparent to all. It was a muddle disgraceful and
detrimental to the service. Whatever their grievances,
one with another, they were all to blame; and they,
each and all, in due time received their punishment.
That Blunt and Pleasonton each had a justifiable
grievance, no one familiar with the facts will dispute ;
but that was not the time nor the place to settle such
matters. Instead of leaving the field at the close of
day, when the enemy was within easy reach, Blunt and
Pleasonton should have thrown their divisions in line
and settled with Price first, and with Curtis afterwards.
Had McNeil, Phillips, or Benteen, whose brigades
had done substantially all the fighting that day, been
there alone with their troops, Price and his army would
have been prisoners of war before the sun went down.
But that was not to be. " To Fort Scott or bust " was
emblazoned on the escutcheons of the major-generals
— and to Fort Scott they went.
Thus three times in three days Price had been in a
trap, and each time he was allowed to escape. At In-
dependence, Curtis left the door open ; and he walked
out. At Mine Creek, Blunt refused to come to the
front; and Pleasonton prevented a second charge. If
Blunt had come, or Pleasonton kept still, Price and his
army would have been ours before the halt was
sounded.
At the forks of the road where the last fighting oc-
curred, the major-generals were again at fault for leav-
ing the field before the work was finished. All day long
they lingered in the rear, and knew not the helpless
condition of Price and his troops. Invariably they
reached the fighting ground after the advance had done
its work and passed on. In that brilliant charge of
174 KANSAS IN THE SIXTIES
Phillips and Benteen at Mine Creek, when they swept
everything before them on the north side and dashed
across and were rounding up the prisoners, General
Pleasonton reached the summit of the plateau from
which the charge was made and opened fire on his own
men who had crossed the creek.
It was subsequently asserted that only four shots
were fired. That is a mistake. Sergeant Hiner and I
were among the first to cross the creek in pursuit of the
fleeing Rebels, and while we and many others were
gathering up prisoners within range of Fagan's line,
which had formed to cover Marmaduke's retreat, the
artillery opened fire from the rear and drove all our
men on the extreme left back to shelter.
As proof of this I quote from the report of one of
the officers as follows:
HEADQUARTERS FOURTH IOWA CAVALRY,
DIAMOND GROVE, October 27, 1864.
MAJOR-GENERAL CURTIS:
. . . We advanced so far into the enemy's ranks that
Major-General Pleasonton ordered our own battery to shell
us, thinking we were the retreating enemy, and my men were
obliged to scatter to avoid being cut to pieces by our own
shells. I should have called to see you, General, had not I
received a severe wound in my foot which prevents my riding
my horse.
A. R. PIERCE,
Major, Commanding Fourth Iowa Veteran Cavalry.*
Again, Colonel Cloud of the Second Kansas Cav-
alry, being at the front when the artillery opened, rode
back to the rear where the battery was planted, and told
General Pleasonton, who was near the guns, that he
was firing on his own men. Pleasonton, who had just
reached the field, snubbed Cloud and continued firing
until an officer rode back from beyond the creek where
the men were pursuing and capturing the retreating
Rebels and told him that he was killing his own men.
*Bebellion Records, Vol. XLI, Part IV, p. 290.
PRICE'S RETREAT AND ESCAPE 175
He then gave the order to cease firing, after he had
driven the Fourth Iowa Cavalry from that part of the
field.
Had Pleasonton or any one of the major-generals
been at the front, where they belonged, this and many
other inexcusable blunders would not have occurred.
Their conduct during the entire day was the reverse of
what it should have been ; and the same is true of Cur-
tis and Pleasonton after they reached Fort Scott. They
wrangled like children all the next forenoon over the
highly important question, whether the prisoners and
captured artillery should go to Leavenworth or St.
Louis. Next they differed on the question of pursuing
Price. Then Pleasonton contended that he and his
troops were not subject to the orders of General Cur-
tis; and so the wrangle became worse and worse en-
tangled, until Pleasonton submitted the questions of
dispute to General Bosecrans, who replied as follows :
HEADQUARTERS CAVALRY DIVISION,
FORT SCOTT, October 27, 1864.
MAJOR-GENERAL CURTIS,
Commanding Department of Kansas:
GENERAL: Major-General Rosecrans has just telegraphed
me instructions from Warrensburg to send Generals San-
born 's and McNeil's brigades to their respective districts 'at
Springfield and Holla, and to conduct the remaining brigades
with the captured prisoners and property of their commands
to Warrensburg. I shall therefore start to-morrow morning
to execute these orders.
I remain, General, very respectfully, your obedient
servant,
A. PLEASONTON,
Major-General Commanding.*
On receipt of this despatch General Curtis got busy
and sent a despatch to General Halleck, of which the
following is a copy:
"Rebellion Records, Vol. XLI, Part IV, p. 287.
176 KANSAS IN THE SIXTIES
HEADQUARTERS ARMY OP THE BORDER,
NEWTONIA, Mo., October 29, 1864 — 5 A. M.
MAJ. GEN. H. W. HALLECK, Chief -of -Staff :
After our victory last night I started the troops at 3 this
morning in farther pursuit of Price, General McNeil in
advance, when orders from General Eosecrans, through
Pleasonton, were received, taking McNeil to Rolla and San-
born to Springfield, and otherwise disposing of all other
troops, including my prisoners, who remained in the rear.
I am left with only the fragments of my own regular volun-
teers, not exceeding 1,000 fit for duty; and deeming it
improper to continue a pursuit in another department, sus-
pended by its proper commander, I shall return by slow
marches to my own department command.
S. R. CURTIS,
Major-General.*
Halleck informed General Grant of what his gen-
erals were doing and not doing in Missouri. Grant
was a true soldier, and had no use for fuss and feath-
ers ; nor patience with envy and jealousy. By a single
despatch he caused five major-generals, who had been
following Price around over Missouri for thirty days,
to stand up and take notice.
HIS ESCAPE
Price, with his bedragled fragments of an army, had
slipped the halter and was gone, but they were ordered
to follow him to the Arkansas Eiver. Blunt, with a
light brigade of cavalry, was already in pursuit. Gen-
eral Curtis followed, and reached Carthage on the
twenty-eighth, where he was joined by Generals San-
born and McNeil with their brigades, who had pre-
viously been ordered by Rosecrans to Springfield and
Rolla. General Rosecrans, with A. J. Smith's com-
mand, was at Warrensburg, a hundred miles away.
Pleasonton was in Fort Scott; and Phillips and Ben-
teen, with their exhausted brigades, were struggling
*Rebellion Eecords, Vol. XLI, Part IV, p. 318.
PRICE'S RETREAT AND ESCAPE 177
along on Price's trail in obedience to orders issued by
generals ; not with the expectation of overtaking Price,
but manifestly for the purpose of hiding their own
moccasin tracks. At Newtonia on the afternoon of the
twenty-eighth, Blunt and Sanborn had a skirmish with
Shelby 's cavalry ; and that was the last of the fighting,
in so far as the pursuit of Price was concerned.
General Curtis remained in Newtonia until the thir-
tieth, when he moved west six miles to Neosho and de-
spatched General Rosecrans as follows :
HEADQUARTERS ARMY OF THE BORDER,
IN THE FIELD, NEOSHO, Oct. 30, 1864 — 1 A.M.
GENERAL ROSECRANS :
An order just received from Lieutenant-General Grant,
directing the pursuit of Price to be continued to the Arkansas
River, seems to conflict with your order directing the troops
of General Pleasonton to their several districts. I have there-
fore ordered your troops to resume the pursuit, supposing it
will meet with your approbation, as there are no other troops
sufficient to carry out the purpose of the lieutenant-general
commanding. Since my militia has left me, your portion of
the command has been much the greatest, and I have
expected your arrival to assume the responsibilities of the
movement against Price.
S. R. CURTIS,
Major-General.*
On the same day General Curtis despatched General
A. J. Smith as follows :
HEADQUARTERS ARMY OP THE BORDER,
NEOSHO, Mo., Oct. 30, 1864 — 1 A.M.
GENERAL A. J. SMITH:
Your despatch of the 27th instant is just received. After
fighting Price at Newtonia last night he retreated toward
Cassville. An order from General Rosecrans withdrew his
troops, and I, not being strong enough without them, came
thus far on my return. Orders just received from Lieu-
tenant-General Grant induce me to resume the pursuit. I
shall need infantry very much, but do not see how you will
*Eebellion Records, Vol. XLI, Part IV, pp. 331-2.
178 KANSAS IN THE SIXTIES
be able to overtake me except by conveying your men in
wagons and travelling night and day.
S. R. CURTIS,
Major-General.*
Following this despatch General Curtis issued or-
ders to the brigade commanders of Pleasonton's divis-
ion, of which the following is a copy :
HEADQUARTERS ARMY OF THE BORDER,
IN THE FIELD, NEOSHO, Mo., October 30, 1864 — 1 A.M.
BRIG. GEN. JOHN MCNEIL,
Commanding Brigade in the Field:
Despatches just received from Lieutenant-General Grant
require me to continue the pursuit of Price to the Arkansas
River. You will, therefore, proceed forthwith to Cassville,
reporting to me with your command at that place. If you
find Price's trail leaves the road, halt and inform me as soon
as possible.
Very respectfully, your obedient servant,
S. R. CURTIS,
Major-General, Commanding.*
The orders to Sanborn, Phillips, and Benteen were
substantially the same as that to McNeil. When these
orders were issued, Price, with what remained of his
army, was at Maysville, fifty miles west of Cassville,
the place of rendezvous.
While Curtis was at Cassville, Price moved to Cane
Hill and sent Fagan with a bunch of his worn-out troops
over to Fayetteville for supplies. A detachment of the
First Arkansas Cavalry, being on duty there, stood
Fagan off and notified General Curtis, who had moved
forward to the battlefield of Pea Eidge. On hearing
bf Fagan 's proximity to Fayetteville General Curtis
moved in that direction; and when Curtis moved,
Fagan ran back to Cane Hill, and then General Price
gathered up his luggage and pushed on to the Arkansas
Kiver.
'Rebellion Records, Vol. XLI, Part IV, p. 332.
PRICE'S RETREAT AND ESCAPE 179
In due time Curtis reached Fayetteville, and from
there, by easy going, finally arrived at the Arkansas
Eiver on November 8, 1864, eleven days out from Fort
Scott. On arriving at the north bank of that long-
sought river, General Curtis was informed that Price
with the remnant of his raiders, all clad in their pa-
jamas, had crossed the previous day and scattered
" like chaff before the wind."
The old fox having made good his escape, General
Curtis levelled his guns in the direction where he was
last seen, and fired a national salute as a tribute to the
masterly skill displayed by the commanding generals
in rescuing the States of Missouri and Kansas from
their perilous condition. He also fired a few spherical
case-shot across the river at the trail Price left behind,
is a warning to evil-doers.
THE LAST DITCH
Thus ended the most reckless, ill-advised, disastrous
raid from either army during the War of the Rebellion.
General Price marched into Missouri with a mob of
nine thousand undisciplined, unmanageable thieves,
robbers, and murderers. Many of his officers, but com-
paratively few of his followers, were brave, gallant
soldiers ; but his so-called army, as a whole, was a dis-
grace to civilization.
On the twenty-eighth of August, 1864, General Price
and staff started from Camden, Arkansas ; August 30,
he marched north with the divisions of Generals Fagan
and Marmaduke, five thousand strong; September 6,
he crossed the Arkansas River at Dardanelle, almost
under the guns of Major-General Fred. Steele of the
Federal Army ; September 16, he reached Pocahontas,
and was there joined by General Shelby, who had pre-
ceded him for the purpose of gathering up deserters,
stragglers, and renegades who had been hiding out in
the hills of Southern Missouri and Northern Arkansas.
On the twenty- seventh of September he reached
180 KANSAS IN THE SIXTIES
Pilot Knob and attacked General Ewing 's small com-
mand with artillery at a distance. After shelling Fort
Davidson all day, he withdrew to a place of safety for
the night. With Shelby's division added and the de-
serters and conscripts brought in by him, Price then
had nine thousand men with him, while Ewing had
about fifteen hundred. During the night Ewing retired
taking with him such ordinance and stores as he could
transport, and destroying the remainder.
If Price had an army of nine thousand trained sol-
diers, or half that number, why did he not attack
Ewing in Pilot Knob or on the road to Eolla, with small
arms? Not once did he come within range of Colonel
Fletcher's infantry regiment. That, of itself was suf-
ficient to show General Eosecrans that Price was not
in Missouri on a military expedition.
From Pilot Knob General Price wound his way
around over the hills, by way of Franklin to Jefferson
City, without risking a battle anywhere, except when
he met unarmed citizens or could find an isolated com-
pany of State troops off their guard. Then his savage
barbarians immediately became lions, ravenous for
blood.
On arriving at Jefferson City he mounted his white
horse, Bucephalus, and made a display that was terrific
to behold. Not knowing the man, General Grant would
have been staggered by it, or Napoleon would have
been driven across the Alps. All day on October the
seventh, he raved and frothed, formed and reformed,
and marched and countermarched, but never once did
he or any of his cavaliers venture within range of the
frowning Federal guns, backed as they were by a line
of true blue, eager for the fray. But he did not ad-
vance. He was there to be seen, not heard. The range
of the field-glass was preferable to the range of musk-
etry, and he was content to let well-enough alone.
Like Renatus of Anjou, his line of battle was in the
form of a crescent, with Marmaduke on the right, Fagan
PRICE'S RETREAT AND ESCAPE 181
in the centre, and Shelby on the left. He foamed and
looked fierce as he dashed to and fro on old Bucephalus,
exciting his war-scarred veterans to deeds of daring.
They had not assailed a chicken roost, robbed a smoke-
house, or murdered an unarmed citizen since the pre-
vious night, and they were fairly chafing for a chance
to show their skill as savage warriors.
Often while in line during the day their swords
would leap from their scabbards and whirl through the
air, cutting the pigeon wing, to scare the Federals, who
were chafing for an opportunity to be " up and at
'em." Thus the bluffers bluffed throughout the day,
and when the dark mantle of night was spread, they
sheathed their swords and stole silently away.
This was further proof positive to General Rose-
crans that Price did not mean to fight. From Jefferson
City he moved on, ravaging the country as he went by
way of Boonville and Lexington to Kansas City, where
the whole gang should have been arrested and sent to
the dry Tortugas. And yet, when we take into con-
sideration the terrible ordeal through which General
Price and his followers passed on their retreat from
Kansas City back to the canebrakes of Arkansas, it is
a question whether it were not best for us to let them
flounder along, in haste, over bad roads, with scant sup-
plies, to the last Confederate ditch, which to them was
already in full view.
The Price Eaid was a stupendous blunder from the
beginning. It tarnished the record of General Price,
both as a man and a soldier, and wiped his army out of
existence. It demoralized most of his officers and sol-
diers, and rendered them unfit for future citizenship.
It led to the destruction of vast quantities of property
and the loss of many valuable lives after the downfall
of the Confederacy was a certainty.
When General Price, with a remnant of his raiders,
returned to Camden, broken, discouraged, and dishon-
ored, he was assailed by his superior and subordinate
182 KANSAS IN THE SIXTIES
officers, and driven to the necessity of demanding a
Court of Inquiry to place responsibility where it be-
longed, and save his reputation as an officer and a gen-
tleman. This Court listened to a vast amount of testi-
mony from Confederate officers and soldiers, and then
lay down and died with the Confederacy.
With the crushing of this noted raid through Mis-
souri and Kansas, my services as a soldier in the Civil
War ceased, and I returned to the peaceful pursuits
of life. After this there were no battles of importance
west of the Mississippi. The Confederate Army, in
what the enemy called the Trans-Mississippi Depart-
ment, was hopelessly stranded in the last ditch. Their
men were deserting and going home in squads; and
their officers were looking one at another and saying,
" I told you so."
East of the Mississippi the war was still raging with
great fury. Steadily the Union armies were closing
in on the enemy and driving him slowly back — back
to the last ditch. Grant had Lee bottled up in Peters-
burg and Eichmond ; Thomas was rounding up the frag-
ments of Hood's army in Tennessee; Sherman was
sweeping the field from Atlanta to the sea ; and Sheri-
dan was settling the dispute with Jubal Early over in
the Shenandoah Valley.
Everywhere things were coming our way. The so-
called Confederacy was on its last legs — tottering to
the fall. The arch-conspirators who had caused all
the trouble were floundering in the depths of dark de-
spair, while their misguided army officers, who had
often led their gallant soldiers to the muzzle of our
guns, stood silent in the shadow of the lost cause, await-
ing orders to take down the flag of treason.
At the helm of the Government at Washington, with
his strong right hand grasping the wheel, and his great
heart beating in unison with the step of his soldiers,
stood Abraham Lincoln, the true, loyal, courageous
pilot who had guided our ship through the storm to a
harbor of safety.
PART SECOND
PART SECOND
CHAPTER
ELECTION OF 1864
DEMOCRATIC NATIONAL CONVENTION — GEO. B. M'CLELLAN
NOMINATED FOB PBESEDENT.
THE Presidential election in the Fall of 1864 was of
vital importance to the cause of the Union. The
War of the Rebellion was still raging, and conspirators
at home and abroad were active in their efforts to de-
stroy the Government of the United States. The home
traitors wanted a President who would stop the war
and allow them to establish a separate Government
based upon the institution of slavery. The foreign con-
spirators wanted to see the Union dissolved, and our
Republican form of Government broken into frag-
ments, which sooner or later would become involved in
war among themselves and eventually become an easy
prey to the avarice and greed of the despotic powers of
Europe.
Especially was this true of Louis Napoleon, the
usurper and coward on the throne of France, who was
at that time imploring the authorities of Great Britain
to join him in recognizing the independence of the so-
called Confederate Government. Also many of the
English officials, including members of Parliament and
others high in authority, were clamoring for the same.
But Queen Victoria, the queen of queens, said " No,"
and that left the Rebel cause in the hands of home tal-
186
186 KANSAS IN THE SIXTIES
ent, with Napoleon's troops stranded on the plains of
Mexico.
Then, when all hopes of foreign intervention had
vanished, and their armies were rapidly approaching
the last ditch, the Confederate authorities, in the ago-
nies of despair, undertook to save themselves and the
wreckage of their folly by the aid of political bush-
whackers in the loyal States. All their guns — rifle
and smooth-bore, flint-lock and muzzle-loading, good,
bad, and indifferent — were turned on Mr. Lincoln.
Emissaries were sent by Jefferson Davis from Rich-
mond into Canada to help to organize and discipline his
allies in the extreme Northern States; and Rebel am-
bassadors, by the score, were sent from Kentucky, Ten-
nessee, and Missouri into Indiana, Illinois, and Iowa to
help to organize and discipline the Anti-war Demo-
crats, Knights of the Golden Circle, Sons of Liberty,
Copperheads, Bounty- jumpers, and other similar char-
acters in those States. In fact, everything was done by
the Rebel authorities that could be done to unite their
dupes and sympathizers under the banner of Democ-
racy, with the view of electing a President who would
take down the American flag, call home the Federal
troops, dissolve the Union, and let the slave-holding
States go their way in peace. That was exactly the ob-
ject and purpose of Jefferson Davis and his Northern
allies.
DEMOCKATIC NATIONAL CONVENTION
The whole scheme was clearly revealed by the
Democratic National Convention, which assembled at
Chicago on the twenty-ninth of August, 1864. Hora-
lio Seymour of New York, a notorious Rebel sym-
pathizer, was made President of the Convention. On
assuming the chair he made an extreme anti-war
speech, which was cheered to the echo. C. L. Vallan-
digham of Ohio, who had previously been banished
for treasonable utterances, and then sent back by
ELECTION OF 1864 187
Jefferson Davis through Canada to attend the Conven-
tion, was there, and a leading spirit on the committee
of resolutions. The resolutions reported by Vallandig-
ham, as the Democratic platform for that year and
adopted by the Convention, were saturated with trea-
son, and would have been ratified by every soldier in
the Eebel army. Section II reads as follows :
Resolved, That this Convention does explicitly declare, as
the sense of the American people, that, after four years of
failure to restore the Union by the experiment of war, during
which, under the pretence of a military necessity of a war
power higher than the Constitution, the Constitution itself
has been disregarded in every part, and public liberty and
private right alike trodden down, and the material prosperity
of the country essentially impaired, justice, humanity, liberty,
and the public welfare demand that immediate efforts be
made for a cessation of hostilities, with a view to an ultimate
Convention of all the States, or other peaceable means, to the
end that, at the earliest practicable moment, peace may be
restored on the basis of the Federal Union of the States.
This man Vallandigham, who reported the plat-
form from which the above is an extract, had previously
been tried by a military tribunal, convicted as a public
enemy, and sent through the Federal lines as a crim-
inal. The next heard of him, he was in Richmond tell-
ing the Confederates what to do and how to do it. In
an interview with commissioners, appointed by Davis
to confer with the authorities at Washington on terms
of peace, he said : " If you can only hold out this year
[1864] the peace party of the North will sweep the
Lincoln dynasty out of political existence."
Having urged the Rebels to hold out for another
year, and having otherwise given such aid and comfort
to the enemy as lay within his power, he is next heard
of in Canada with Clement C. Clay, James P. Holcombe,
George N. Souders, and other Confederate agents, or-
ganizing raids and plotting schemes of invasion, rob-
bery, and murder along our northern frontier settle-
188 KANSAS IN THE SIXTIES
ments. And lastly, having made the rounds and done
all he could against the Government and people of the
United States, he sneaks back through the lines and
bobs up in the Chicago Convention with a platform de-
claring the war a failure, and demanding that the Union
Army be called home and disbanded.
Then with the " Lincoln dynasty swept out of po-
litical existence, ' ' and the Eebel Government and army
still " holding out," there would have been nothing
more for Jefferson Davis and his army to do, except
march over to Washington and distribute the spoils of
war. In view of what the Confederate authorities said
to Vallandigham while in Eichmond, and the ultimatum
of President Davis, as expressed to Colonel James F.
Jaques of the Seventy-third Illinois and J. R. Gilmore
of New York, who visited him by permission of Mr.
Lincoln, the audacity of Vallandigham and his commit-
tee on resolutions was refreshing in the extreme. Nev-
ertheless the committee was cheered to the echo, and
the resolutions were adopted without a dissenting vote.
When those resolutions were reported and adopted
as the platform of the Democratic party, every mem-
ber of the committee and every intelligent delegate in
the Convention knew that nothing short of a dissolu-
tion of the Union and the independence of the Confed-
eracy would be considered by Jefferson Davis for a
moment. Seymour, the President of the Convention,
understood it; Vallandigham, who had talked with
Davis and others at Eichmond, understood it ; Colonel
Marmaduke of Missouri, Colonel Grenf ell of John Mor-
gan's staff, and other Confederate officers who were
delegates in the Convention, understood it. In fact all,
except the chumps, knew exactly what the resolutions
meant and the object and purpose at which they aimed.
The empty words at the foot of the resolution
quoted, — namely : * ' to the end that at the earliest prac-
ticable moment, peace may be restored on the basis of
the Federal Union of the States, " — in the face of the
ELECTION OF 1864 189
remainder of the resolution, and the known ultimatum
of President Davis, were meaningless, except as a de-
coy for ignorant but loyal Democratic voters. If a
single doubt ever existed in the mind of an intelligent
person of the North or of the South, as to the purpose
and determination of Jefferson Davis, that doubt was
removed by his ultimatum, delivered to Colonel Jaques
of Illinois and Mr. Gilmore of New York in June, 1864.
At the close of a protracted conference, President
Davis said :
The North was mad and blind; it would not let us gov-
ern ourselves ; and so the War came ; and now it must go on
till the last man of this generation falls in his tracks, and his
children seize his musket and fight our battle, unless you
acknowledge our right to self-government. "We are not fight-
ing for slavery. "We are fighting for Independence; that or
extermination we will have.
Again, at parting, Mr. Davis said to them :
Say to Mr. Lincoln, from me, that I shall at any time
be pleased to receive proposals for peace on the basis of our
independence. It will be useless to approach me with any
other.
Thus it was settled and proclaimed to the world
that the war must go on until the Confederacy was rec-
ognized as an independent Government, or the people
of the South were exterminated. And yet Seymour,
Vallandigham, and their fellow-conspirators at Chi-
cago were resolving that the Federal Army was the
only obstacle in the way of peace and the restoration
of Federal Union of all the States.
Such absurdity would not have been attempted in a
convention composed of intelligent, loyal citizens. Nor
would the treasonable utterances of many of the dele-
gates in that convention have been tolerated by any-
body but traitors. Some of them soared aloft and
hurled all sorts of things at the Union Army and the
Lincoln dynasty. The dirtier and more vulgar they be-
came, the louder they were cheered.
190 KANSAS IN THE SIXTIES
One pure-minded, polished delegate (the Rev. Henry
Clay Dean, of Iowa), smarting under the wounds that
had been inflicted upon him by the " usurper, traitor,
and tyrant " (Lincoln), sallied forth with spikes in his
belt and poison on his lips, and proceeded to declare his
sentiments thus:
For over three years, Lincoln had been calling for men,
and they had been given. But, with all the vast armies
placed at his command, he had failed ! failed ! failed ! failed !
Such failure had never been known. Such destruction of hu-
man life had never been seen since the destruction of Sen-
nacherib by the breath of the Almighty. And still the mon-
ster usurper wanted more men for his slaughter pens. . . .
Ever since the usurper, traitor, and tyrant had occupied the
Presidential chair, the Republican party had shouted " War
to the knife, and the knife to the hilt ! " Blood had flowed in
torrents; and yet the thirst of the old monster was not
quenched. His cry was for more blood.
Not to be overshadowed by this patriot from the
scrub-oaks of Iowa, in his devotion to the cause of the
Union, the Hon. C. Chauncy Burr, of New Jersey,
stepped to the front and proceeded to shake the raft-
ers with his eloquence, clothed in polished language
and well-rounded periods. Chauncy was an all-round
master of men and was ready at all times to lead where
duty called. He had read the " Art of War in Eu-
rope," guided the elephants at Arbela, snuffed the bat-
tle of Marathon, and covered the retreat from Moscow ;
and now he was ready to storm the gates of Camp
Douglas and send home eight thousand Confederate
gentlemen who had been ruthlessly torn from their be-
loved homes in the South by Lincoln 's army, and were
then held at Camp Douglas as prisoners of war. In
the course of his fierce onslaught, this orator further
said:
We had no right to burn their wheat-fields, steal their
pianos, spoons, or jewelry. Mr. Lincoln had stolen a good
many thousand negroes; but for every negro he had thus
ELECTION OF 1864 191
stolen, he had stolen ten thousand spoons. It had been said
that, if the South would lay down their arms, they would
be received back into the Union. The South could not hon-
orably lay down her arms, for she was fighting for her honor.
Two millions of men had been sent down to the slaughter-
pens of the South, and the army of Lincoln could not again
be filled, neither by enlistments nor conscription. If he ever
uttered a prayer, it was that no one of the States of the
Union should be conquered and subjugated.
This astounding information concerning the theft
of pianos, spoons, and negroes, by " Mr. Lincoln and
his boodlers," set the rang and file of the Convention
on fire. The delegates shrieked for vengeance, and
were clamorous to be led against Camp Douglas —
" the Black Hole of Calcutta," as they called it. Sey-
mour, their presiding officer, tried to call the rabble to
order, but it would not be called. The braves wanted
their war-bonnets and a leader; and then good-bye to
the " Lincoln dynasty," good-bye to the butchers in
the slaughter-pens of the South, good-bye to the tyrant
Lincoln, good-bye to Federal prisons !
They were going to hit the war-path, suppress the
tyrant Lincoln, knock his army out, and turn things
over to Jefferson Davis without waiting for the Presi-
dential election. The more they were called to order,
the louder they roared, until finally Colonel Grenfell
(of the staff of John Morgan, the Rebel raider), and
Colonel Marmaduke (brother of the Rebel General
whom we captured at Mine Creek) stepped to the front
and ordered them to be quiet. The disturbing elements
having been assuaged and order restored. Judge Mil-
ler, a meek and mild-mannered patriot from Ohio, pro-
ceeded to tell the Convention all about the peculiarities
and characteristics of War Democrats.
It so happened that a great many of the brave boys
in blue, who were then at the front battering down the
walls of treason, had originally been Jeff ersonian Dem-
ocrats in the state of Ohio. Generals Grant, Sherman,
192 KANSAS IN THE SIXTIES
Sheridan, Buell, Stedman, the two Mitchels, and many
other gallant Union officers of Democratic proclivities,
were sons of that glorious State.
But who and what were these men in comparison to
the valiant Vallandigham of Ohio, the noble Dean of
Iowa, and gallant ex-Eev. C. Chauncy Burr of the great
commonwealth of New Jersey. Echo might have an-
swered, but for that renowned jurist, philosopher, and
statesman, Judge Miller of Ohio, who forged his way
to the front and in stentorian tones said : ' * There is no
real difference between a War Democrat and an Aboli-
tionist. They are links of one sausage, made out of the
same dog."
Thus the delegates being enlightened on all im-
portant matters, the Convention was prepared to nom-
inate a candidate for the Presidency who would sweep
the country like a prairie fire. Then the great question
was, Who would be the most available man ? The Con-
federate Army officers and Rebel delegates from Vir-
ginia, Kentucky, and Missouri wanted General Lee.
Indiana, Illinois, and Iowa wanted Jefferson Davis;
and Ohio, Delaware, New York, and New Jersey
wanted a Northern man with secession proclivities — a
Rebel sympathizer who would stand pat on the plat-
form just adopted.
GEO. B. M'CLELLAN NOMINATED FOB PRESIDENT
After skirmishing, beating the brush, and scouring
the woods all round in search of a candidate who could
deceive the greater number of voters, someone discov-
ered George B. McClellan, in Barcus Alley, nursing his
wounds and vowing eternal vengeance against the ' ' ty-
rannical dynasty " at Washington, and in a loud voice
exclaimed " Eureka! " The name of George B. Mc-
Clellan was not entirely satisfactory to Vallandigham
and the ultra " let-'em-go-in-peace "delegates, because
be had at one time worn the Federal uniform as an
officer ID the Armv. But when reminded that he was
ELECTION OP 1864 193
not an officer to hurt, but merely a grand stand per-
former, heavy on dress parade and hasty on the retreat,
all objections were removed, and he was unanimously
nominated amid cheers and Rebel yells.
After another lively skirmish, George H. Pendle-
ton, of Ohio, who had opposed the war at every step
taken by Mr. Lincoln for the preservation of the Union,
was nominated for Vice-President.
McClellan had led the Potomac Army — at that
time the finest and best equipped army the world had
even seen — to the walls of Richmond, and finding the
gates wide open, turned around without a battle and
beat a hasty retreat to a place of safety, without the
loss of a man. Such skill was seldom equalled and
never surpassed in modern or ancient warfare, and
yet it did not please the authorities at Washington,
who at the proper time gave the distinguished General
indefinite leave of absence. Hence he was discovered
by the Chicago Convention as the man of all men to
lead where traitors could follow.
CHAPTEE XIV
NATIONAL UNION CONVENTION OF 1864
PRESIDENT LINCOLN NOMINATED FOR RE-ELECTION RE-
SULT OF THE ELECTION THE CONFEDERACY DOOMED.
THE National Union Convention, composed of Re-
publicans and War Democrats, assembled at Bal-
timore on Tuesday, June 7, and organized, electing the
Eev. Robert J. Breckinridge, of Kentucky, as tempor-
ary chairman, and Ex-Governor Dennison, of Ohio, as
permanent President. This Convention was made up
of men loyal and true to the Government of the United
States, and the cause of humanity. Henry J. Raymond,
of New York, was chairman of the committee on resolu-
tions, and reported a platform from which the follow-
ing is an extract :
Resolved, That we approve the determination of the Gov-
ernment of the United States not to compromise with Rebels,
nor to offer them any terms of peace except such as may be
based upon an unconditional surrender of their hostility and
a return to their just allegiance to the Constitution and the
laws of the United States; and that we call upon the Gov-
ernment to maintain this position, and to prosecute the war
with the utmost possible vigor to the complete suppression
of the Rebellion, in full reliance upon the self-sacrificing
patriotism, the heroic valor, and the undying devotion of the
American people to their country and its free institutions.
PRESIDENT LINCOLN NOMINATED FOR RE-ELECTION
To find a man for the Presidency, who could stand
with both feet on this platform, required no search war-
194
NATIONAL UNION CONVENTION 195
rant. All eyes were turned on the pilot of pilots, the
captain of the home-coming ship that had sailed the
bloody seas, and was rounding into port with the Stars
and Stripes flying from the top-mast. Our army and
navy, in good form, were still there, while the Confed-
eracy was tottering on the verge of despair. The peo-
ple had said to their delegates at Baltimore, " Don't
stop to swap horses in the middle of the stream. ' ' Mr.
Lincoln was unanimously nominated for reelection;
and Andrew Johnson, of Tennessee, was chosen as the
candidate for Vice-President.
The two national tickets with their platforms were
now before the people. No one entertained a doubt as
to where Mr. Lincoln stood, nor as to the intent and
purpose of the Union platform. It meant war to the
knife, death to the Confederacy, freedom for the slaves,
and the Union of the States. The Chicago platform
meant the dissolution of the Union, and the Independ-
ence of the Southern Confederacy.
Mr. Lincoln stood square on his platform, and never
wavered or faltered for a moment in his determination
to suppress the Rebellion. George B. McClellan, in his
letter of acceptance, repudiated a part of the Chicago
platform and accepted other parts. No one could tell
where he stood, nor what he intended to do if elected
President. He knew the ultimatum of Jefferson Davis,
yet he wanted to disband the Union Army and stop the
war. He knew that with the Union Army disbanded,
and the armies of Lee, Hood, and Johnson still in the
field, the independence of the Confederacy was a fore-
gone conclusion ; and yet he pretended to be in favor of
peace " on the basis of the Federal Union of the
States." His position was not only untenable, but it
bore falsehood on its face.
The campaign, though largely one-sided, was spir-
ited and in some localities hot and exciting. A million
Union men or more were away in the army, and that
gave the Knights of the Golden Circle, Sons of Liberty,
196 KANSAS IN THE SIXTIES
deserters from the army, and traitors generally, a
chance to annoy the old men and frighten the women
and children, and thereby keep as many Union voters
from the polls as possible. But all such work, disrepu-
table and detestable as it was, availed them nothing.
The Union orators went straight to the loyal peo-
ple and laid bare the false pretences of McClellan and
his supporters. The Union press and pulpit stood in
line with all sails to the breeze, and spoke in no uncer-
tain sounds. The voice and pen of Harriet Beecher
Stowe, Julia Ward Howe, Mary A. Livermore, Susan
B. Anthony, Lucy Stone, and a thousand other brilliant
loyal women rang the changes on impending dangers
to the Republic, and portrayed the disasters that would
follow in the wake of fragmentary Governments.
While the battle for ballots was thus raging
throughout the North, a million loyal guns were hurl-
ing missiles of death at the Confederacy throughout
the South. Closer and closer Grant was drawing his
lines around Lee at Richmond and Petersburg. Right
on the heels of the Chicago Convention, bang went
Sherman's guns, and down went Atlanta in the heart of
the Confederacy. Incessant was the roar of cannon
and the rattle of musketry along Thomas 's lines among
the hills of Tennessee. All rolling and tumbling went
Jubal Early 's forces back from the Shenandoah, with
Phil Sheridan and his cavaliers in close pursuit. About
the same time Mobile went down under Farragut's
guns, and the troops elsewhere were moving with a
steadiness of purpose that bespoke the beginning of
the end.
These grand achievements following each other in
rapid succession, after the Chicago Convention had
branded the army as thieves and declared the war a
failure, were emphasized by a Proclamation from Pres-
ident Lincoln for Thanksgiving and national salutes.
This led up to the autumn elections in a number of the
States, preceding the Presidential election of that year.
NATIONAL UNION CONVENTION 197
RESULT OF THE ELECTION
In all the States holding elections in October, with
one exception, the returns showed decided Union gains.
The dear old State of Indiana, which had been claimed
by the Knights of the Copperhead Circle for McClellan
and Pendleton, led the van of October States by giving
the Eepublican State ticket a majority of over twenty
thousand and a gain of four members of Congress.
These elections left no doubt about the reelection of Mr.
Lincoln, although McClellan and his disloyal support-
ers in the north, and Jefferson Davis and his army in
the South, held on, grasping like drowning men at
straws, and hoping against hope, until the election in
November, which sealed their doom.
At that election McClellan and Pendleton carried
just three States — 'New Jersey, Delaware, and Ken-
tucky— twenty-one electoral votes; and Lincoln and
Johnson carried all the other States — two hundred
and twelve electoral votes. No election was held in the
ten States then in rebellion. The vote of Kentucky
should have been excluded on account of the vast Eebel
vote cast for McClellan and Pendleton in that State;
but since it did not change the result it was allowed to
be counted.
The result of this national election was a death blow
to the Confederacy. It settled the political schemes
and aspirations of the Confederate conspirators at
Richmond, and their allies in the loyal States. It broke
the backbone of the Confederate army and left the
officers and soldiers stranded on false hopes and unful-
filled promises. Through the dark gloom that en-
shrouded every camp, they saw the handwriting on the
wall. From that moment they began to inquire, one of
another, what they should do to be saved.
THE CONFEDERACY DOOMED
West of the Mississippi the jig was up. General
Price was retreating southward from his disastrous
198 KANSAS IN THE SIXTIES
raid through Missouri, when he received the news of
McClellan's defeat. On the morning of the election
Jie crossed the Arkansas River with the shattered frag-
ments of his followers, and that was the last ever heard
of him as a factor in war. His divisions scattered and
his soldiers vanished. Kirby Smith, with sad recollec-
tions, and dark forebodings, betook himself to the
pineries of Louisiana, while his ragged, hungry, battle-
scarred veterans were wandering about over the coun-
try in search of something to eat. Dick Taylor crossed
the Mississippi and reported to Hood; Marmaduke
was already a prisoner of war in Missouri ; Shelby was
organizing an expedition to Mexico; Fagan was at
home in Arkansas, taking observations and calcula-
tions as to the exact time when the Confederate meteor
would disappear; Gano was camped at Caddo, guard-
ing the remains of Price's army, and endeavoring to
suppress the rebellion among Cooper's Indians ; Cooper
was looking after boot-leggers from Texas; and from
the Ides of November to the fall of Richmond the re-
mainder of the Confederate army officers in the Trans-
Mississippi Department were serving on Courts of
Inquiry and Boards of Review, convened for the pur-
pose of trying each other on recriminating charges
incident to an army that had been the architect of its
own misfortunes.
East of the Mississippi the armies of Lee, Hood, and
Johnson, although staggering and bleeding, were still
holding out. Lee was bottled up in Richmond and Pe-
tersburg, with the Army of Northern Virginia slowly
melting away. Hood had given up in despair; and
Johnson was in North Carolina trying to cooperate
with Lee in Virginia.
But the die was cast ; the Confederacy was doomed.
General Grant held his death-grip on Lee until he took
down the Confederate flag and surrendered the Army
NATIONAL UNION CONVENTION 199
of Northern Virginia as prisoners of war. General
Thomas, at Nashville, knocked Hood over the ropes and
sent his army glimmering through the dreams that
were ; General Sherman closed in on Joe Johnston ; and
the Confederacy became a thing of the past.
CHAPTEE XV
THE KANSAS STATE CONVENTIONS AND ELECTION OF 1864
STATE MILITIA AND POLITICAL GENERALS EESULT OF THE
ELECTION GOVERNOR *S MESSAGE REORGANIZATION
OF THE STATE MILITIA THE SECOND INAUGURATION OF
PRESIDENT LINCOLN ON TO CITY POINT ASSASSI-
NATION OF PRESIDENT LINCOLN.
ON the eighth of September, 1864, the Republican
State Convention assembled at Topeka, and or-
ganized by the election of John T. Cox, of Coffey
Connty as President; Wm. M. Inman, Captain Bow-
man, Wm. Tholen, W. E. Bowker, and Thaddeus Pren-
tice as Vice-Presidents ; and R. R. Lockwood and F. G.
Adams as Secretaries.
After adopting resolutions endorsing the adminis-
tration of President Lincoln, ratifying the National
Union platform adopted at Baltimore, and demanding
a Vigorous prosecution of the war, the Convention pro-
ceeded to nominate a State Ticket, Associate Justice,
Presidential electors, and Member of Congress as
follows :
For Governor, Samuel J. Crawford, Anderson County.
For Lieut. Governor, James McGrew, Wyandotte County.
For See. of State, R. A. Barker, Atchison County.
For Auditor of State, J. R. Swallow, Lyon County.
For State Treasurer, Wm. Spriggs, Anderson County.
For Atty. General, J. D. Brumbaugh, Marshal County.
For Supt. Pub. Instruc., I. T. Goodnow, Riley County.
For Associate Justice, Jacob Safford, Shawnee County.
For Member of Congress, Sidney Clark, Douglas County.
For Presidential Electors: Ellsworth Chesebrough,
Atchison County; Nelson McCracken, Leavenworth County;
Robert McBratney, Davis County.
200
KANSAS STATE CONVENTIONS 201
Before the election Mr. Chesebrough and Mr. Mc-
Cracken died, and Colonels Cloud and Moonlight were
chosen by the State Central Committee to succeed them
on the electoral ticket.
On the thirteenth of September two opposition Con-
ventions were held in Topeka ; one composed of Anti-
Lane Eepublicans, and the other of mugwump
Democrats. The one endorsed the Baltimore platform
and advised its followers to support Mr. Lincoln. The
other endorsed the Chicago platform and ratified the
nomination of George B. McClellan and George H.
Pendleton. Then the two Conventions came together
and named a State ticket, composed of disaffected Re-
publicans and War Democrats as follows:
For Governor, S. 0. Thacher, Douglas County.
For Lieut. Governor, John J. Ingalls, Atchison County.
For Sec. of State, W. R. Sanders, Coffey County.
For State Treasurer, J. R. McClure, Davis County.
For State Auditor, Asa Hairgrove, Linn County.
For Atty. General, H. Griswold, Leavenworth County.
For Supt. Pub. Instruc., Peter MacVicar, Shawnee
County.
For Associate Justice, S. A. Kingman, Brown County.
For Member of Congress, A. L. Lee, Doniphan County.
For Presidential Electors : T. Bridgens, Bourbon County ;
A. G. Ege, Doniphan County; Nelson Cobb, Douglas County.
All the Democrats were earnest supporters of
George B. McClellan.
STATE MILITIA AND POLITICAL GENEKALS
After the State Conventions had nominated their
tickets, the State Militia (as hereinbefore shown) was
called out to resist the Eebel General Price, who
was advancing on Kansas; and that prevented a
political campaign, except such as Governor Carney
and his adherents attempted among the State troops
while they were in camp to protect their homes.
It was asserted that the Governor did not believe
202 KANSAS IN THE SIXTIES
that Price was in Missouri, or that Kansas was in dan-
ger; but that was not a reasonable excuse for his con-
duct and the mutinous conduct of some of his Militia
generals and their staff officers. They all knew that
Price with a large force was coming, and nothing but
bullets and bayonets would check his advance. Never-
theless the political tempering with the troops went
bravely on until Blunt 's and Pleasonton's guns were
thundering around Independence and along the Big
Blue, within hearing of the Kansas State troops.
But then it was too late to repair the damage that
had been done. Those who were responsible for the
position and condition of the State troops, stood aghast
or betook themselves to the brush, and left the un-
trained regiments to look out for themselves. Had not
Blunt and his tried veterans thrown themselves into the
breach, Price would have marched through Kansas
City and made an ash-heap of Southern Kansas and
the scattered regiments of State Militia.
It was a close call. Every intelligent officer and
soldier at the front saw the danger from the moment
the first gun was fired at the Little Blue, but they could
not help themselves. The political generals over the
line had their ' l eyes sot ' ' on the forthcoming election,
and votes were of more importance to them than all
the Eebels in Missouri. But the demoralized condition
of the Militia was not entirely attributable to the
political hucksters in their camps. Quite a number of
copperheads and Rebel sympathizers were there tam-
pering with the troops and putting in their best licks
to keep them from crossing the State line.
Yet after all, their ill-advised conduct availed them
nothing, in so far as votes were concerned. The rank
and file of the Militia saw through the schemes and
traps that had been set for them; and when they re-
turned home and went to the polls two weeks later,
they expressed their opinions in no uncertain way.
KANSAS STATE CONVENTIONS 203
RESULT OF THE ELECTION
The election was held on the eighth day of Novem-
ber, just two weeks after the Battle of Mine Creek, the
day Price was torn to pieces and driven from the State.
The combined opposition, composed of disaffected Re-
publicans, Anti-War Democrats, mugwumps, copper-
heads, and blanket Osages, carries just six counties;
and in three of these, they voted every bushwhacker
and Rebel sympathizer within reach, from both sides
of the Missouri River, who had escaped Federal prisons
and who were dodging Federal troops. The Repub-
lican State ticket, including the Presidential electors
for Lincoln and Johnson, carried all the other counties ;
and every candidate on the ticket was elected by a
sweeping majority. At the same election members of
the Legislature were chosen, with both Houses largely
Republican.
Thus the new State of Kansas, having escaped the
dire calamities of an invasion by Price and his legions
of demoralized outlaws, and made a clean sweep in
the election of Lincoln Republicans to fill the various
positions created by the Constitution, was now ready to
take its proper position among the States of the Union
and give the National Administration at Washington
its loyal support.
On the ninth of January, 1865, the oath of office was
administered to the State officers elect, by the Chief
Justice of the Supreme Court, and the Great Seal of
State turned over to the new Governor, Samuel J.
Crawford, who immediately entered upon the duties
of his office.
At that time the Executive Offices and Legislative
Halls were in buildings known as the " State Row," lo-
cated on the west side of Kansas Avenue, between
Fourth and Fifth Streets. On the tenth of January,
1865, the new Legislature convened, organized, and ap-
pointed a Joint Committee to notify the Governor that
204 KANSAS IN THE SIXTIES
the two Houses were in session and ready to receive
any communication he might have to make.*
When I assumed the duties of Governor, I was in-
experienced in State affairs. The State, as yet, was
new. Many of the young men were in the army, and
the older ones were on duty at home, endeavoring to
protect their families and their own lives and property
against bushwhackers from Missouri, and thieves, rob-
bers, and murderers, who were prowling along our bor-
ders on the south and east, and often making raids on
the interior settlers.
At the same time a band of lawless Osage Indians,
who had been in the Confederate service and kept along
with the Rebel troops in the Indian Territory for scalp-
ing purposes, returned to their reservation in Southern
Kansas and started out to plunder our settlers in that
part of the State. Also the wild tribes of the plains,
the Cheyennes, Arapahoes, Kiowas, and Comanches
had been tampered with by Confederate authorities,
and were making war on our Western frontier settle-
ments. Then, again, there were quite a number of
young able-bodied Kansas Patriots engaged in the
laudable business of stealing cattle in the Indian Ter-
ritory and driving them to Kansas in droves to be
placed where they would do the most good.
In addition to all this, the revenue of the State was
deficient and its credit at a heavy discount. Some of
the State institutions had been located by the Legisla-
ture, but nothing done by the State authorities in the
way of securing public buildings and setting the in-
stitutions in active operation.
Also, I found on assuming the duties of the office,
that a draft for troops had been ordered in Kansas by
the Secretary of War; when, as a matter of fact, the
State had already furnished over three thousand vol-
unteers more than had been officially called for by the
President.
*See Appendix.
KANSAS STATE CONVENTIONS 205
So, all in all, the affairs of State were in bad shape.
But existing conditions had to be met, entanglements
straightened out, and a new order of things set in
motion.
GOVERNOR'S MESSAGE
On the eleventh of January, 1865, as required by the
Constitution, I transmitted to the Legislature, a Mes-
sage in writing from which I make the following brief
extracts :
The Constitution of the State makes it the duty of the
Governor at the commencement of each session of the Legis-
lature to communicate, in writing, such information as he
may possess in reference to the condition of the State and
recommend such measures as he may deem expedient. In
compliance with this requirement and in accordance with
established usage, I herewith transmit to you such informa-
tion as I have, together with such recommendation as in my
judgment the interests of the State require.
During the past season our citizens have been blessed
with health and unusual prosperity. Although the produc-
tions of the soil have been less abundant than in former
years, yet they have been sufficient to meet our wants, and
amply reward the husbandman for his labor. . .
The reelection of Abraham Lincoln is the people's dec-
laration that the war is not a failure, but that it shall be
vigorously prosecuted until the last vestige of American
Slavery is extirpated — until every traitor lays down his arms
and bows in allegiance to our flag, and submission to the laws
of our Government.
It is our duty, and not ours only, but the duty of every
loyal man in the nation to support the Federal Administra-
tion, and afford every facility for the vigorous and success-
ful prosecution of the war, to a speedy termination. . .
The State has furnished for the war seventeen regiments,
with an aggregate of twenty thousand eight hundred and
twenty-two men (including after-enlistments into these regi-
ments to fill their decimated ranks) ; of this number one thou-
sand two hundred and nine have reenlisted as veterans.
The quota for Kansas under the various calls to July 19,
206 KANSAS IN THE SIXTIES
1864, was fourteen thousand one hundred and four; add to
this quota under the last call, which will be, if assigned to
Kansas two thousand two hundred and thirty-three, and we
have a total of sixteen thousand three hundred and thirty-
seven, which, with due allowance for those enlisted from other
States and accredited to Kansas will still give the State an
excess over and above all calls ; but from some cause we have
not received credit for all the troops furnished by the
State.
I most respectfully call your attention to the subject of
education. It cannot be too carefully considered by you.
A summary statement furnished by the Superintendent of
Public Instruction shows eight hundred and fourteen School
Districts organized, with thirty-seven thousand five hundred
and eighty-two children. Of this number twenty-two thou-
sand four hundred and twenty-nine attended school the past
year. . .
To you, as one of the coordinate branches of our State
government, is entrusted the important business of making
the laws. It will afford me pleasure to give in detail any
such information I may possess, and not now attainable, and
pledge you my hearty cooperation in all measures for the
protection and development of the interests of the State and
its growing population. I would suggest retrenchment where
it may be made without prejudice ; and a rigid economy in
all appropriations. I am not aware that there is such an
amount of legislation as will occupy your attention during
the whole time limited by law, and would therefore sug-
gest that your session be as short as a proper regard and care
for the public interests will justify.
The reports of the State officers and recommenda-
tions relative thereto, embodied in this message, are of
record in the several departments of State, and are
therefore herein omitted.
Amid surroundings peculiar to a new State in time
of war, the executive officers and the State Legislature
of Kansas started early in January, 1865, to grope
their way through a wilderness beset with obstacles.
Prowling about the State capital, and in the slums of
the larger cities, were statesmen who made politics a
KANSAS STATE CONVENTIONS 207
trade and lived by their wits. When the Legislature
of 1865 met, they were there in force to direct legisla-
tion and see that no political mistakes were made.
Promptly they organized their forces into a body
piratical, known as " The Third House," which, like
all Gaul, was divided into three parts — one to look
after the Executive Department, one to manage the
Legislature, and one to guard against the Judiciary.
Their schemes were numerous, and their audacity
knew no bounds. They acted as though they were old
hands at the business, and seemed to think the State
a legitimate object of common plunder. But erelong
they learned that things were not always as they
seemed ; that Kansas had a written Constitution and a
code of printed laws, all of which must be respected
and would be rigidly enforced, regardless of politicians,
or previous circumstances. This was undesirable in-
formation, but it had the desired effect. Soon " The
Third House " adjourned sine die, and its patriotic
members, in squads, folded their tents and stole silently
away to their haunts, vowing vengeance against mili-
tary despots.
REORGANIZATION OP THE STATE MILITIA
On the twelfth of January James H. Lane was re-
elected United States Senator, and then the Legislature
settled down to steady work. Of the many acts passed
by the Legislature of 1865, one provided for the organ-
ization, discipline, and pay of the State Militia. In
pursuance of this act, the State troops were reorgan-
ized, and general and staff officers were appointed and
confirmed as follows:
"W. F. Cloud, Major-General.
John A. Martin, Brigadier-General, First District.
Jas. M. Harvey, Brigadier-General, Second District.
John T. Burris, Brigadier-General, Third District.
Harrison Kelley, Brigadier-General, Fourth District.
T. J. Anderson, Colonel and Adjutant-General.
208 KANSAS IN THE SIXTIES
J. K. Rankin, Colonel and Paymaster-General.
D. E. Ballard, Colonel and Quartermaster-General.
N. T. Winans, Colonel and Surgeon-General.
Ed. G. Ross, Lieut-Colonel and Aide-de-Camp.
Cyrus Leland, Lieut-Colonel and Aide-de-Camp.
Charles Dimon, Lieut-Colonel and Aide-de-Camp.
H. T. Beman, Major and Ass't. Adjutant-General.
John G. Haskell, Captain and Ass't Quartermaster-
General.
Through the instrumentality of Colonel Anderson,
the records of the Adjutant-General's office were
brought up and made complete, giving the name and
record of every volunteer officer and soldier mustered
into the United States service during the Civil War.
The official services of Colonels Eankin, Ballard, and
Dr. Winans were also efficient and without a blemish.
The generals all stood ready to do their duty when oc-
casion required, but fortunately their services were
seldom needed.
After the close of the war the civil authorities along
our eastern border proved equal to every emergency,
although their duties were often arduous and danger-
ous. The sheriffs in the border counties, from Cher-
okee to Doniphan, were men who had been tried on
other fields ; and all evil-doers soon learned to respect
them. Along the southern border the sheriffs, assisted
by General Kelley and Major Chitwood, were able to
protect the people against marauding bands of thieves,
robbers, and rebel Osages. But of the Osages and the
wild tribes on our western border, I shall hereinafter
have something more to say.
The State had more than filled its quota for troops
under each and every call made by the President, and
yet, when I reached Topeka, I was informed by the
War Department that a draft for still more troops had
been ordered in Kansas. Knowing that somebody was
in error, I directed the Adjutant-General to make a pre-
liminary report, showing the aggregate number of
troops furnished by the State, the number for which
KANSAS STATE CONVENTIONS 209
the State had received credit, and the excess over and
above all calls.
The Legislature, having been informed of the pend-
ing draft, and assured of its injustice, set about in
earnest to expedite needed legislation, so as to ad-
journ at the earliest practical moment and thereby en-
able me to proceed to Washington and secure credit for
all the soldiers furnished by the State. While the Leg-
islature was thus hastening its work, the Adjutant-
General was busy gathering and compiling statistics
for his report. On the twentieth of February the Leg-
islature adjourned; the next day the Adjutant-
General's report was completed, and on February
twenty-second I started for Washington.
On arriving there I presented the report to the Sec-
retary of War, the Hon. E. M. Stanton, who referred it
to Colonel Vincent of the War Department, with in-
structions to make it special and report the facts to
him at the earliest practicable moment. When I
reached the War Office I found a number of other Gov-
ernors there endeavoring to have the draft suspended
in their States ; but as Secretary Stanton informed me,
no one of them had furnished his quota ; and, of course,
in such States the draft could not be suspended. In
the course of a day or so, Colonel Vincent reported to
Secretary Stanton that he had carefully examined the
records and found that Kansas had furnished her full
quota of troops under all calls, and in addition thereto,
a surplus of over three thousand.
When this report was made, General Grant was
pressing Lee at Kichmond ; Thomas was winding up the
Confederacy in Tennessee; and Sherman was batter-
ing down the walls of treason along the Atlantic coast.
The authorities at Washington, therefore, were rather
reluctant about doing anything that would in the slight-
est degree check reinforcements or in any other way
interfere with the onward movements of troops in the
field.
Nevertheless the need of troops in Tennessee was not
210 KANSAS IN THE SIXTIES
so pressing as in the Potomac Army, and on that ac-
count Stanton ordered the draft in Kansas suspended,
and the drafted men, who had been sent forward to
fill the depleted ranks of Kansas regiments, discharged
and returned home. This order was sent at once to the
Provost Marshal of Kansas; but by request of Secre-
tary Stanton, for obvious reasons, it was not made
public at the time. In fact, most of the drafted men
after they reached their regiments in Tennessee did not
care to be discharged. Those assigned to the Tenth
Kansas served with that gallant regiment until mus-
tered out of service at the close of the war. To have
been in at the finish of such a war was better for young,
able-bodied men than not to have been there at all.
Having completed my work in the War Depart-
ment, I was invited by Secretary Stanton to remain in
Washington until after the inauguration of Mr. Lin-
coln, and then visit the Army in front of Richmond and
Petersburg. To visit the Potomac Army at that stage
of military operations was a privilege seldom granted
to any person not connected with the army. Hence I
readily accepted the Secretary's kind invitation.
THE SECOND INAUGUKATION OF PEESIDENT LINCOLN
The second inauguration of Mr. Lincoln was an im-
portant event in the history of this country. It marked
the beginning of the end of the Rebellion. It meant a
reunited country; a nation among nations; a Govern-
ment that was republican in form and in fact. The oath
of office was administered by the Chief Justice of the
Supreme Court ; and from the east portico of the Cap-
itol, Mr. Lincoln delivered his inaugural address to an
immense throng of statesmen, soldiers, and citizens.
He seemed to be deeply impressed with the sub-
ject-matter of his discourse. The vast audience lis-
tened intently and often expressed their approval of
what he was saying, but generally speaking, they were
serious and thoughtful. Everybody realized that the
KANSAS STATE CONVENTIONS 211
war was rapidly drawing to a close, and Mr. Lincoln,
no doubt, shared in that general belief; and, yet, in
view of the triumphs already achieved, and the mo-
mentous results soon to follow, he was profoundly
serious.
In closing this never-to-be-forgotten address, Mr.
Lincoln said :
Fondly do we hope, fervently do we pray, that thig
mighty scourge of war may speedily pass away. Yet if God
wills that it continue until all the wealth piled by the bond-
man's two hundred and fifty years of unrequited toil shall
be sunk, and until every drop of blood drawn with the lash
shall be paid by another drawn with the sword, as was
said three thousand years ago, so still it must be said, " The
judgments of the Lord are true and righteous altogether."
With malice toward none, with charity for all, with
firmness in the right as God gives us to see the right, let us
strive to finish the work we are in, — to bind up the Nation 's
wounds ; to care for him who shall have borne the battle and
for his widow, and his orphan; to do all which may achieve
and cherish a just and a lasting peace among ourselves and
with all nations.
On the evening of March 4, following the inaugural
ceremonies, all eyes were turned toward the Depart-
ment of the Interior, where the usual inauguration ball
was to be given. This, as the young folks seemed to
think, was the event of the occasion. Certainly it was
grand, and in many ways dazzling. The ballroom was
filled to overflowing, packed almost to suffocation, with
charming ladies and with men of various grades. In
all respects, the second inauguration of Mr. Lincoln
was an event in the history of our country never to be
forgotten by those who were there.
Of the Kansas party present, was an observing
young lady from Atchison, who has kindly refreshed
my memory on things as they occurred on that im-
portant occasion. In a recent communication she says :
212 KANSAS IN THE SIXTIES
ATCHISON, KANSAS, October 14, '10.
MY DEAR GOVERNOR:
I received your letter, and am only too happy to re-
late to you the little incidents of our trip to Washington in
1865, and our attendance at the Inaugural Ball.
You probably recall that the Atchison party met yours
at St. Joseph, where we all took supper at the old Patee
House, now no more and forgotten. Our party was com-
posed of several ladies and gentlemen, including my Mother
and myself. At St. Joseph we took a Hannibal and St. Joe
train to Junction City, Mo. The train carried no sleeper.
Arriving at Junction City, we transferred to the Missouri Pa-
cific and crossed the river at St. Charles in a ferry boat;
and upon our arrival in St. Louis, the Atchison party reg-
istered at Barnum's, and I think you and Mr. Conway went
to the Planters'. We remained in St. Louis all day, taking
the Baltimore & Ohio in the evening for Washington. I re-
member that we were detained by an accident in Ohio, and
were obliged to remain over night at some small town. The
next morning we resumed our journey, reaching Bell Air the
following day. Here we were detained again because of the
activities of the Bebels, who had torn up the track; and
it was another day before we could resume our journey. Al-
though the track was guarded by Union soldiers the rest of
the way, we were again detained at Relay Station, where
we spent the night ; and resuming our slow journey the next
morning, we reached Baltimore late in the afternoon. We
found the hotels crowded with travellers on their way to
Washington. The ladies of our party being unable to se-
cure rooms, the dining-room of our aotel was converted into
a dormitory by the accommodating landlord, and beds were
made of the tables by a liberal use of mattresses. Being tired
and exhausted, we soon fell asleep and rested well.
The next day was the third of March ; and on the morn-
ing of the 4th we went down to Washington. It was rain-
ing, and the mud was ankle-deep on Pennsylvania Avenue;
for that was before the days of " Boss" Sheppard, and
Washington streets were not paved.
We proceeded to the Capitol, where we were received
by Senator Pomeroy. He conducted us to the private gal-
lery in the Senate Chamber, but it was so crowded, only the
KANSAS STATE CONVENTIONS 218
ladies of our party could find seats. Being then the Gov-
ernor of Kansas, you, of course, were seated on the Senate
floor.
After Andrew Johnson was sworn in as Vice-Presideut,
by Hannibal Hamliii, we were all conducted to the east front
of the Capitol, where President Lincoln took the oath of
office, the second time. The rain had ceased, the sun was
shining, and the impatient crowd, weary with many hours
of waiting in the wind and rain, cheered as the President
stepped forth and Chief Justice Chase administered the oath
of office. How little we then realized that in a few weeks,
the country he had saved would be called to mourn his loss.
The inaugural address was brief; and after the crowd dis-
persed, we returned to the hotel to get ready for the great
ball in the evening.
I found my invitation waiting for me, engraved on a
piece of cardboard, about eight by ten inches, with the Amer-
ican eagle emblazoned thereon. As I beheld my name —
" Miss Louisa Chesebrough " —written upon it, I was filled
with joyous anticipation of the coming event. (Alas! this
invitation, which I so highly prized, was lost in the fire
which completely destroyed our old home in 1888.)
You called for us about nine o'clock. The ball took
place in the Interior Department Building ; and when we ar-
rived we were conducted to the room reserved for the Gov-
ernors and the ladies of their families. After removing our
wraps and straightening out the kinks in our extension hoops,
which were then the prevailing fashion, we proceeded to the
ballroom. Ornate hair-dressing was very much in vogue, and
the style which was used was called the water-fall. My own
costume was of net over white silk, looped with garlands of
black and white flowers, and was made in Baltimore, having
been previously ordered.
President Lincoln and his Cabinet stood upon a platform
and as we were presented, he grasped our hands in a most
cordial and friendly manner. Mrs. Lincoln was dressed in
the extreme of fashion and seemed ill at ease. She possessed
neither beauty nor grace. The most distinguished-looking
man on the platform was Secretary Seward, a man of high
breeding and culture. I was much disappointed in the ap-
pearance of the Presidential party, so far as the women were
214 KANSAS IN THE SIXTIES
concerned, and in spite of their elaborate gowns, feathers,
and jewels, they had neither charm nor style.
We joined the promenade and walked through a cotillion
and afterwards watched the crowd. When supper was an-
nounced, the scramble and rush was terrific and in spite of
guarded doors, the throng pushed on undaunted and un-
abashed. Most of the women, after passing through the
doors, presented a forlorn appearance, with feathers and
puffs and flounces torn, and faces flushed. I arrived in fairly
good condition, due largely to the skill and gallantry of my
escort.
The banquet table, without exception, was the most beau-
tiful I ever saw, and the viands were choice and abundant.
The confectioner's art was well displayed, table decorations
at that time being very high, and flowers were not much
used; but such fairy palaces of spun sugar with towers and
turrets made of sweets, I never saw before and have not seen
since ! The service was excellent, and after all had recovered
from the tempestuous entrance to the feast, we did ample
justice to the occasion. Everybody seemed happy and joy-
ous. The war was almost over, and peace and quiet were
anticipated, with no fear of the future. No one thought of
the tragedy that was so soon to occur. And after all, how
blessed it is, that the future is veiled, for were it not so, few
would have the courage to live on! We are all cheered by
Hope and in the faith that all will be right.
I shall always remember this great event ; and when I had
returned to my hotel, I was conscious of having spent the
pleasantest evening of my life. I was still young, and life
was new and fresh to me, and yet I fully realized that it was
a memorable event.
I recall but few incidents of the homeward trip; but
when the telegraph, shortly after our arrival in Atchison,
brought the terrible news of the assassination of our Pres-
ident, I could not help but feel grateful through the gloom
that oppressed me, that I was permitted to see the wonder-
ful Lincoln and to have touched the hand that guided our be-
loved country through the great trial.
Sincerely yours,
ANNA LOUISA CHESEBROUGH INGALLS.
KANSAS STATE CONVENTIONS 215
This young lady was subsequently the wife of the
Hon. John J. Ingalls, of Kansas, who served his State
with distinguished ability for eighteen years, in the
United States Senate.
After the inauguration of Mr. Lincoln, I visited
New York and made arrangements for a Fiscal Agency
for the State, in that city. As yet the credit of the
State had not been established. Our bonds, with in-
terest payable in New York, had previously been nego-
tiated and were floating at a heavy rate of discount.
Those who were handling them were uninformed as to
the assets and resources of the State. When told that
Kansas embraced over fifty million acres of land, un-
surpassed in richness and fertility; that the climate
was mild ; that the vast prairies were interspersed with
streams of running water and covered with grass suit-
able for grazing purposes, and that the soil was well
adapted to the production of fruit and agricultural
products of all kinds, the financiers, whose business it
was to deal in bonds, stocks, and money, began to take
notice. During the war, our Kansas State Bonds were
sold at prices ranging from sixty-five to ninety cents on
the dollar; but after the Confederacy collapsed, they
steadily increased to par, and finally to a premium.
While in New York I also made arrangements with
the National Bureau of Immigration for the distribu-
tion of pamphlets and circulars, printed in English
and other languages, relating to Kansas and the Home-
stead and Preemption Laws.
Having finished my work in New York, I returned
to Washington preparatory to a visit to City Point and
the Potomac Army at Richmond and Petersburg. In
my absence Senator Lane, Colonel A. S. Johnson, Col-
onel Weer, and other Kansas friends had made all
necessary arrangements for our trip to the seat of war.
The revenue cutter which Secretary Stanton had
previously tendered was placed at our disposal, and
was in readiness to start. On the evening of March
216 KANSAS IN THE SIXTIES
twenty-third we all went abroad, and soon our stanch
man-of-war was steaming down the Potomac Eiver.
We entered the Chesapeake Bay late in the afternoon,
and ploughed the waves southward to Fortress Mon-
roe, and thence onward into Hampton Roads.
ON TO CITY POINT
After viewing the wrecks of the Congress and Cum-
berland, which were silent, but still visible in Hampton
Roads, and each of us telling how (if we had been
there) we should have drawn and quartered the Mer-
rimac and scalped its officers for deserting our Navy,
we swung around into the James River and steamed for
Richmond.
Soon we were passing over the historic grounds,
where our ancestors first made settlement on American
soil. The ground upon which they landed had been
washed away by the river. Their cabins, their forts,
their fields, orchards, and gardens were all gone, with
no one left to tell the tale. Time and the grand old
river, sweeping down from the mountains to the sea,
had done their work. The original Jamestown, around
which savagery clustered for a century, was gone. It
had been swallowed up and lost.
As our stanch little ship ploughed its way over
these ancient ruins one could not avoid being impressed
with sad reflections and the fickleness of time. Here
but a brief period in the past, stood the resolute pio-
neers of a great Republic, with nothing but their own
manly courage, steady nerve, and unerring rifle, for
protection against a race of savage barbarians. Here
lived the ancestors of many of the heroes of the Rev-
olutionary War ; but now buried under the dark waves
of rushing waters and surrounded by armed traitors.
From Jamestown (that was) we passed on up the
river to Dutch Gap — a work of folly that cost the
Government a vast sum of money which might have
been expended to a better purpose. It was a gap cut
KANSAS STATE CONVENTIONS 217
through a hill of solid stone to avoid a bend of a few
miles in the James River. The cost of the gap, or canal,
would have paid for the extra hour consumed by Gov-
ernment boats in going around the bend for forty years
or more. It was a freak notion that struck one of our
generals who should have been giving his attention to
the enemy in his front, rather than to a bend in the
river in his rear. But freaks struck a good many of our
political generals, and, of course, they had to be hu-
mored, to prevent them from resigning and running
for Congress or the Presidency. Such generals were
contemptible, but it was impossible for the Govern-
ment to get rid of them.
From Dutch Gap we proceeded to City Point and
anchored in the James River, opposite General Grant 's
headquarters. On the morning of March 25, we paid
our respects to the General and heard much concern-
ing his plan of operations. Grant was a great General,
and knew at all times what he was doing. In Lee he
had a powerful antagonist, and nobody understood
that fact better than Grant. He grasped the whole sit-
uation, and moved his army with the precision of an
expert in a game of chess. He anticipated almost
every movement Lee would naturally make, and he was
generally prepared for it. He figured almost to the
day when Lee would abandon Richmond and Peters-
burg.
( After a brief visit the General gave us our liberty
within the lines, and also transportation over a rough-
and-tumble railroad, running from City Point around
in the rear of his line of entrenchments, fortifications,
and signal stations, as far as the same extended. At
one o'clock the next morning, General Gordon, with a
division of Confederate troops quietly advanced across
the intervening space between the two lines and at-
tacked and captured Fort Stedman, one of the many
forts along the Federal line. Instantly a division of
the Sixth Corps, which was in line in rear of Fort Sted-
218 KANSAS IN THE SIXTIES
man, dashed forward and cut off Gordon's retreat.
His men sought shelter in the fort they had temporarily
captured, but the guns from the forts next on either
side were immediately turned upon them and they
were quickly shelled into submission. Gordon, with a
few of his men, ran the gantlet and made his escape.
Early in the morning following this disastrous charge
of Gordon, General Grant opened fire with his artillery
from the forts, and at the same time advancing his in-
fantry in the centre and on the left, made things lively
during the day. About nine o 'clock in the morning, our
Kansas contingent boarded a train at City Point and
rode out seven or eight miles to an elevated position in
rear of the contending forces and viewed the battle
from a distance.
When we reached our viewpoint, no less than two
hundred guns from our forts were pouring shot and
shell into the Eebel lines, and the smoke from fifty
thousand muskets was rising slowly over a line of blue,
as far as our field-glasses would reach. Nor were Lee's
guns silent. Often shot and shell from his artillery
would go screeching over our uneasy heads, as we
sat on top of our car gazing intently at the awful scene
before us.
The operators on top of the signal stations, high
in the air, were busy with their red flags communicat-
ing General Grant's orders from City Point to his
generals all along the line. They looked like little
boys playing with toys, but they were unflinching men
of nerve giving strict attention to duty, amid dangerous
surroundings. Often a Eebel battery would be turned
on a signal tower, and when the shells were bursting
all around the operator, he paid no attention to them.
As a picture the scene was grand, but terrific. It
was a real tragedy enacted in the open field on a mag-
nificent scale. During the day many men were killed
and wounded on both sides; but the Union line was
advanced, and some three thousand of the enemy were
KANSAS STATE CONVENTIONS 219
captured. From that day the fighting continued al-
most incessantly until General Lee abandoned the field
and started on his fatal retreat to Appomattox.
When the thrilling scenes of that ever-memorable
twenty-sixth of March were drawing to a close, the
Kansas Jayhawkers boarded their car and returned to
City Point. The next day we were furnished with
horses and visited friends in the different corps of the
army; and on the twenty-eighth we started on our re-
turn to Washington. To those of our party who had
served in the Western Army, the trip was intensely
interesting; and our only regret was that we could not
be assigned to duty with the Potomac Army and be in
at the finish. But duty called us elsewhere. After
attending to some matters in the Departments, we bade
Mr. Lincoln and others good-bye and wended our way
westward.
ASSASSINATION OF PBESIDENT LINCOLN
A few days after I left Washington, Mr. Lincoln
was assassinated by J. Wilkes Booth, a dissolute, de-
generate son of a noble ancestry. On receiving the
news of this awful calamity, I issued a Proclamation
of which the following is a copy :
EXECUTIVE OFFICE,
TOPEKA, KAN., April 15, 1865.
A PROCLAMATION
An inscrutable but all-wise Providence has suddenly vis-
ited the nation amid its rejoicings and newborn hopes.
President Lincoln has been wickedly assassinated ; a loyal
people are shedding bitter tears of sorrow; grief, the most
poignant, fills the heart of every true patriot in the land;
a calamity that seems almost unbearable has visited the na-
tion! Let us submit with Christian resignation to the great
affliction — kiss the hand that smites us, remembering that
it is our Father's will.
I do recommend that in respect to the memory of the
slain hero and patriot, the public and private buildings in
the State be draped in mourning, so far as practicable, for
220 KANSAS IN THE SIXTIES
the space of ten days; and that on Sunday the 23rd inst,
especial prayers be offered to the Almighty God that He will
sanctify this great calamity to the good of our bereaved
country.
In witness whereof, I have hereunto caused the great
seal of the State to be affixed, at Topeka, this 15th day of
April, 1865.
S. J. CRAWFORD, Governor.
The assassination of Mr. Lincoln, following so
closely the surrender of Lee and his army, turned the
loyal people of the United States from the camp of re-
joicing into a house of mourning. It shocked the Na-
tion, and staggered even the Confederate soldiers who
had fought bravely and surrendered manfully. But
the " Golden Circle " patriots, who had opposed the
war and were " agin the government," betook them-
selves to the dark alleys and rejoiced over this heinous
crime of their loathsome confederate.
These miserable creatures were silly enough to
think that the life of the Eepublic was in the hands of
one man, and since he was removed the Government of
the United States wo.uld fall to pieces. Soon, however,
the wires flashed the news that Andrew Johnson was
President. Lee had gone home, Jefferson Davis was
in prison, the assassins were in irons, and the Govern-
ment at Washington was much alive. This was sad
news for the copperheads. They had been listening,
with ear-trumpets, to hear of Davis in the White House,
Grant in prison, Lee marching on Washington, and
Wilkes Booth as Provost Marshal General.
Thus, bereft of all hopes, and suddenly "plunged
into the depths of dark despair," they shed their but-
ternut garb and signaled for lifeboats. When the boys
in blue came marching home with the flag of their
country untarnished, these Northern traitors-at-heart,
burned the records of their treasonable organizations,
bowed to the inevitable, and moved off to places where
their evil deeds were unknown.
KANSAS STATE CONVENTIONS 221
The assassination of Mr. Lincoln was the last of a
chain of dark and despicable crimes committed by
traitors during the so-called Civil War. It was re-
volting in the extreme, but in keeping with the methods
adopted and sanctioned by Confederate authorities
generally.
Of all loyal men, Mr. Lincoln was the last who should
have suffered such a fate. He had stood bravely at
the helm and guided the ship safely through the storm
without turning to the right or left. His great heart
went out in sympathy to those who fell ; and while he
was lowering his life-boats to bring them in, the fatal
shot was fired. For a while humanity was shocked, and
the civilized world stood aghast ; but the Ship of State
rode the storm with all sails spread to the breeze.
Of all our American statesmen and patriots, Mr.
Lincoln stands first and foremost. In peace and war
he was the noblest of them all.
CHAPTER XVI
HOMEWAED BOUND
INDIAN MAEAUDEKS STATE AFFAIRS IMMIGRATION SO-
CIETY.
THE Confederate Government having been blotted
out, and the armies of Lee and Johnston having
surrendered to Grant and Sherman, peace at last be-
gan to dawn on our bleeding country. The roar of can-
non, the rattle of musketry, and the clash of sabres,
were now heard but faintly on distant fields. A long
and bloody war was drawing to a close. Many homes
were draped in mourning, and many mothers, wives,
and sisters bowed down in grief.
But serious, sad, and sanguinary as had been the
struggle, it had to be. It was that or worse. The wreck
and ruin of other republics, scattered over the history
of time, and the struggle through which our ancestors
had passed, were too plain in the memory of loyal
Americans to allow the Government of the United
States to go down, merely to gratify the whims of am-
bitious politicians.
After the surrender of General Lee and the capture
of Jefferson Davis, the Rebel brigades and battalions
elsewhere, quickly followed in the wake, and soon the
survivors of the lost cause were homeward bound. The
Confederacy having thus gone down and out, the Fed-
eral troops were ordered home to be paid off and hon-
orably mustered out of service.
One by one the Kansas regiments, battalions, and
batteries of artillery, with their ranks depleted, came
marching home, turned over their untarnished flags to
the State, and then the brave survivors of the bloodiest
222
HOMEWARD BOUND 223
war of modern times resumed the peaceful pursuits of
life.
For a while the Rebel bushwhackers, outlaws, and
sneak-thieves generally along the eastern and southern
borders of Kansas, defied the civil and military authori-
ties and attempted to continue their dastardly deeds of
crime. But in Kansas they were handled without
gloves and peace was speedily restored. General C.
M. Dodge, a true soldier, was assigned to the command
of the Department, with headquarters at Fort Leaven-
worth; and with his assistance these marauders were
quickly rounded up and mustered out of service, or
furnished with quarters in the State Penitentiary.
INDIAN MARAUDERS
But not so with the wild Indians of the plains, whom
the Confederate authorities had armed, equipped, and
started on the war-path. When the grass sprang up
in the Spring of 1865, these savage barbarians came
out from their winter haunts and waged a relentless
warfare against the frontier settlers of Kansas and
Nebraska.
To protect the lives and property of the people and
suppress this wide-spread insurrection, the Eleventh,
Fifteenth, Sixteenth, and Seventeenth Kansas regi-
ments were sent to the plains; also a number of regi-
ments from Colorado and elsewhere. But the nomads
were wary and hard to catch. Their field of operations
extended from Southern Kansas to North Dakota.
Their main objective points were the frontier settle-
ments of Kansas and Nebraska and the overland routes
of travel and transportation from the Missouri River
to the Western Territories.
The Platte River seemed to be the dividing line be-
tween the Northern and Southern Indians. For ma-
rauding purposes the overland route and country north-
ward belonged to the Sioux tribes and their allies;
while the old Santa Fe trail and settlements in West-
224 KANSAS IN THE SIXTIES
ern Kansas belonged to the Cheyennes, Arapahoes,
Kiowas, and Comanches.
During the Spring and Summer of 1865, Colonel
Cloud, with the Fifteenth Kansas and some other
troops, held the Southern Indians off the frontier set-
tlements, except on two or three occasions, when small
parties dashed in and captured a number of horses and
other property. But in spite of the troops many dep-
redations were committed on the Santa Fe and Smoky
Hill overland routes. Emigrant trains and trains
loaded with merchandise for New Mexico and other
Western Territories were captured and a number of
people killed.
Thus the summer wore away, with the State and the
War Department endeavoring to protect the settlers
and the lines of travel; and the Interior Department
and its agents trying to protect the hostile Indians.
It was an anomolous sort of proceeding, but no more so
than the so-called Indian policy adopted by the Interior
Department at the close of the Civil War and adhered
to for four years thereafter, while the State of Kan-
sas was trying to push its settlements westward, and
the Government was endeavoring to secure the build-
ing of a railroad to the Pacific. But of this policy and
its results, I shall hereinafter make mention.
In the Fall of 1865 the hostile Indians returned
as usual to their winter haunts and the Kansas Vol-
unteers were ordered home and mustered out of serv-
ice. That left the State virtually on its own resources.
It was in the days of reconstruction following the Civil
War, and most of the United States troops were on
duty in the South.
STATE AFFAIRS
On my return from the East in April, 1865, having
secured full recognition of the State by the authorities
at Washington, and made satisfactory arrangements in
New York concerning State finances, I set about to re-
HOMEWAED BOUND 225
construct matters generally and place the State in line
with the other States of the Union.
As yet but little had been done. The War of the
Rebellion had disturbed things generally. The feud
among ambitious politicians in Kansas had been raging
with great fury during the war. The election of a U.
S. Senator and State officers, when there were no va-
cancies, and the impeachment of certain State officials,
had kept the politicians in a state of turmoil and strife,
which left our proud young Commonwealth in a de-
plorable condition financially and otherwise. No
money, no credit, no State buildings nor institutions,
and no standing before the Executive Departments of
the Government at Washington.
But the Kansas troops in the field had made their
mark, and notwithstanding the political muddle at
home, the flag of the State was still flying. In every
important battle west of the Mississippi and in many
to the eastward, Kansas soldiers were there and al-
ways found in the front line; and that is where the
State in its civil affairs should have stood from the be-
ginning. But fate decreed otherwise, and I had to take
things as I found them.
Soon; after assuming the duties of the office, I
rounded up the cattle thieves and turned them and
their stolen herds over to General Dodge. Then the
thieves, robbers, and murderers along the border were
brought to a standstill and disposed of in a way com-
mensurate with their evil doings.
In the early Spring of 1865 the Adjutant General 's
office was reorganized, with experienced officers and
men in charge, who soon made it a model office. The
record of every Kansas officer and soldier in the Civil
War was made up, and will be read by future genera-
tions.
During the Summer the State Militia was reorgan-
ized and placed on a footing where they could be of
service when required. The general officers and the field
226 KANSAS IN THE SIXTIES
and staff, as already shown, were men of military ex-
perience, and many of the enlisted men were veteran
soldiers who had served in the Civil War.
These preliminary arrangements for the preserva-
tion of the record of Kansas soldiers and the protec-
tion of the lives and property of our citizens being com-
pleted, I turned my attention to the necessities of the
State from other than a military standpoint.
As yet our State Capitol, State Penitentiary, and
State institutions were all in embryo. Most of them
had been located, but that was all, except a contract
which had been let for the building of one wing of the
Penitentiary, but which had been violated and was
about to involve the State in litigation. So, as a matter
of fact, we had nothing with which to set up house-
keeping, except the State Seal, a lease on some leaky
buildings, and quite an assortment of bills payable.
But the War of the Rebellion was over, the Union
armies were disbanded, and a million soldiers were at
their homes throughout the country adjusting them-
selves to the new order of things. The young ladies
of the country had been waiting patiently for the
return of their fiances and were now ready to enlist,
" go West, and grow up with the country." The boys
in blue, fresh from the field of battle, where their cour-
age and powers of endurance had never been ques-
tioned, were now ready to surrender at discretion and
be led away whithersoever their tyrannical bosses
might choose to take them.
IMMIGRATION SOCIETY
Knowing something of the characteristics of these
battle-scarred veterans, and how susceptible they would
be when returned home, I organized an Immigration
Society in Topeka and set about to inform the veterans
and others of the opportunities, advantages, and vast
natural resources of the State of Kansas. During the
Spring and Summer of 1865 I prepared and dis-
HOMEWARD BOUND 227
tributed throughout the States east of the Mississippi
many thousand copies of pamphlets and circulars,
showing the vast amount of rich agricultural and graz-
ing lands in Kansas that were open to settlement under
the homestead and preemption laws.
Gradually the tide of immigration, which pre-
viously had been to Minnesota and the Northwest,
turned to Kansas, and by the early Fall every road
leading from the East was lined with emigrant wagons
coming our way. Many immigrants also came by
boat up the Missouri River and by rail over the Han-
nibal and St. Joseph road. For four years we kept up
this immigration work until Eastern Kansas was well
occupied, and the immigrants were moving westward
at a rapid rate. Until the railroads reached the in-
terior of Kansas, most of the settlers came in wagons,
and brought with them horses, cattle, and other things
of value that added to the taxable property of the
State.
This enabled the Legislature and State authorities
to begin work on much needed State buildings and
State institutions. Thus the first year of my adminis-
tration as Governor passed with every good citizen at
the wheel. At an early date orders were issued to the
sheriffs and State troops in border counties, " Let no
guilty man escape," be he a bushwhacker, or criminal
of any other class, color, or previous condition. Some
of the " Knights of the Brush " were killed outright;
others were hanged legally; and the remainder were
safely lodged in the penitentiary.
At the close of the year peace reigned supreme and
prosperity was visible on every hand. Our own gal-
lant soldiers, who had given their State an imperish-
able name, were home from the war and busy selecting
partners for the " quadrille," and homesteads on the
public domain. Their comrades from other States,
with their happy courageous brides who had waited pa-
tiently for the cruel war to close, were coming. The
228 KANSAS IN THE SIXTIES
roads were lined with covered wagons, and new homes
were springing up on every hand.
It was a picturesque scene; a panorama that will
never be forgotten by the pioneer settlers. The tide of
immigration having thus been turned to Kansas, no ef-
fort was spared in keeping it coming our way. Stead-
ily the immigrants pushed southward and westward;
new counties were organized; new towns sprang up,
and new fields of golden grain stretched away as far as
the eye could reach.
CHAPTER XVII
1866
RAILROADS — INDIAN DEPREDATIONS BATTLE FLAGS —
SUICIDE OF SENATOR LANE RE-ELECTED GOVERNOR
A DOUBLE WEDDING STATE UNIVERSITY STATE AGRI-
CULTURAL COLLEGE.
THE year 1866 opened bright and promising to Kan-
sas. It bade fair to be a year of peace and plenty.
The bushwhackers and marauders on our eastern and
southern borders having been suppressed, and the hos-
tile Indians being away in their winter haunts, the set-
tlers everywhere throughout the State felt secure in
their homes.
On the ninth of January the Legislature convened
at Topeka,* organized, and notified the Governor of
their readiness to receive any message or communica-
tion he might have to make.
Among the many laws enacted by the Legislature of
1866, were the acts providing for the erection of the
State Capitol Building, the State Penitentiary, the
Deaf and Dumb Asylum, and other State institutions.
Also acts authorizing the sale of Internal Improve-
ment lands, Agricultural College lands, University,
and Normal School lands. Also acts providing for a
Geological survey and the sale of lands for State pur-
poses. This Legislature was liberal, progressive, and
conservative. The two Houses scrutinized every act,
and did what they believed to be for the best interests
of the State.
On the twenty-seventh of February the Legislature
*See Appendix.
229
230 KANSAS IN THE SIXTIES
adjourned; and soon thereafter proposals were pub-
lished for the building of the east wing of the State
Capitol and the north wing of the State Penitentiary.
While the architect was preparing his plans for these
buildings, I proceeded to New York and sold the bonds
which had been authorized by the Legislature; and
when I returned, the contracts were awarded and the
work of construction was commenced.
EAILBOADS
Meantime the Kansas Pacific Railroad was pushing
its way westward from Wyandotte and Leavenworth,
along the Kansas and Smoky Hill valleys, toward Den-
ver City and the Pacific Ocean. Early in March the
road was completed to Topeka, and opened for travel
and transportation. On the twenty-fifth of June, the
Missouri Pacific was completed to Kansas City, which
made a continuous line from Topeka to the Atlantic
seaboard. On the first of July, 1866, the Kansas Pa-
cific was completed to Junction City, from which point
the overland mail and stage coaches to Santa Fe and
the West subsequently started. On the same day the
first through passenger train started from Leaven-
worth, over the Missouri River and Missouri Pacific
Railroad to St. Louis.
By the original Act of Congress, the route of the
Kansas Pacific (U. P. E. D.) was from Fort Riley to
the point where the Union Pacific crossed the one
hundredth meridian in the State of Nebraska. But on
the third of July, 1866, Congress changed the route
to a line running west from Fort Riley to Denver City,
and thence in a northwesterly direction to the Union
Pacific. As soon as this change was made, the Kansas
Pacific Company definitely located their line on the
Smoky Hill route, and pushed forward the work of
construction.
Their grading parties were strung out along the
new route, and soon reached the " Great American
KANSAS IN THE SIXTIES — 1866 231
Desert," extending from our frontier settlements to
the eastern base of the Eocky Mountains. This vast
plain, or so-called desert, during the summer season,
was covered with a mat of nutritious grass, and inhab-
ited by countless millions of buffalo, deer, antelope, and
other wild animals, and roving bands of wild Indians.
The " Great American Desert " of ancient times had
passed away, and a most beautiful country, robed in
green and jewelled with winding streams of living
water, beckoned the coming of railroads and the white
man's civilization.
INDIAN DEPEEDATIONS
But not so with the wild beasts and savage bar-
barians. They seemed to regard themselves as mon-
archs of all they surveyed, with rights that none could
dispute. Especially was this true of the barbarians.
They roamed the plains in search of something to kill
or somebody to rob. That was their business, their
profession, and they had been trained to it by white
renegades and incompetent, dishonest officials, who
cared nothing for the Indians or for the defenceless
frontier settlers.
Early in the Spring of 1866 the " noble " red sav-
ages, fresh from their haunts in the western part of
the Indian Territory, where they had been supplied
with food, clothing, arms, and ammunition, during the
previous Winter by U. S. Indian Agents, made their
appearance on the old Santa Fe Trail and along the
Smoky Hill, Solomon, and Republican Rivers, and be-
gan to commit depredations on overland trains, trans-
portation, railroad grading parties, and the frontier
settlers.
To meet these barbarians I organized a battalion
of State troops along the western border, and held the
companies in readiness for action when occasion re-
quired. By this means I protected the frontier set-
tlements and prevented them from being rolled back
232 KANSAS IN THE SIXTIES
by the Indians ; but the overland transportation to and
from New Mexico, Colorado, and the West, and the
construction parties on the Kansas Pacific Eailroad,
suffered heavy losses.
General Hancock was in command of the Depart-
ment, with headquarters in St. Louis, but he had only a
few troops of cavalry on duty in Kansas. Neverthe-
less, he did all that could be done under the circum-
stances, as will be observed from a despatch of which
the following is a copy:
HEADQUARTERS DEPARTMENT OF MISSOURI,
ST. Louis, Mo., August 28, 1866.
GOVERNOR CRAWFORD,
Topeka, Kansas :
I have received your despatch to General Hoffman, con-
cerning Indian troubles on the Solomon. I have directed
a scout of one hundred cavalry, from Fort Ellsworth, in that
vicinity. Where can they meet a company of State militia,
now scouting in that vicinity, so they can operate together?
I have also ordered a company of cavalry from Fort .Ells--
worth to Fort Kearny, and will notify General Cooke, so when
they arrive in his department he can use them against the iln-
dians, if necessary. I will do all I can to protect the set-
tlers, and shall always be glad to have any suggestions from
you. The company is an addition already in Solomon's
Fork.
(Signed) WINFIELD S. HANCOCK,
Major General Commanding.
Early in May I ordered out a company of State
troops on the northwestern frontier, which after scout-
ing a few days, met and had a sharp engagement west
of Lake Sibley with a roving band of Cheyennes. After
this engagement the Indians fell back on the plains and
continued to harass emigrants and overland trans-
portation, until driven back to their haunts by the
storms of winter.
While this Indian warfare was being waged on the
plains, the work on our public buildings and State in-
stitutions was progressing steadily. The left-over
KANSAS IN THE SIXTIES — 1866 233
bushwhackers and outlaws along our eastern border
having been suppressed, peace once more reigned su-
preme in Eastern Kansas.
BATTLE FLAGS
The War of the Eebellion having drawn its weary
length to a close, I issued a circular of which the
following is a copy :
STATE OP KANSAS, ADJUTANT GENERAL'S OFFICE,
TOPEKA, June 1, 1866.
The battle flags borne by Kansas Soldiers in the late war
for the preservation of the Union, will be formally received
by the State authorities at the city of Topeka on the 4th of
July next, to be deposited among the archives of the State,
there to be sacredly preserved and che'rished as emblems of
the true devotion and patriotism of her noble sons, dead and
living, to the cause of LIBERTY and UNION.
All officers and soldiers of Kansas in service during the
Rebellion are cordially invited to be present and take part
in the ceremonies of the occasion.
By order of S. J. CRAWFORD,
Gov. and Commander-in-Chief.
T. J. ANDERSON,
Adj't General of Kansas.
In pursuance of this invitation, many of the Kansas
soldiers were in Topeka on the day mentioned, and
turned their battle-scarred flags over to the State,
where they are now in safe keeping.
On the twenty-fifth of July, Congress made a grant
of lands to aid in the construction of the Kansas and
Neosho Valley Kailroad, and on the twenty-sixth an-
other grant, to aid in the construction of a road from
Fort Biley to Fort Smith, Arkansas. These roads were
subsequently consolidated and became the Missouri,
Kansas, Texas.
Grants of land were also made to the Atchison, To-
peka, and Santa Fe ; the Leavenworth, Lawrence, and
Galveston; the Central Branch, and the Kansas City,
234 KANSAS IN THE SIXTIES
Fort Scott, and Gulf roads, in 1863, and work thereon
was commenced in 1866.
These grants insured the building of the roads ; and
that, in turn, insured the rapid development of the
State. For ten years Kansas had been in the throes of
turmoil and strife, and the people were weary and anx-
ious to settle down on homestead and preemption
claims, and grow us with the country.
A few of the old guard, however, who had been play-
ing politics as a profession, and proclaiming war to the
knife and the knife to the hilt, when the enemy was at
a distance, were still in the saddle. They suddenly dis-
covered, after the fighting was all over and Lee had
surrendered, that they were really mad, and it seemed
for a while as though nothing would restrain them from
an indiscriminate massacre of what was left of the Con-
federate troops. According to their notion of warfare,
the soldiers who had been at the front, fighting for four
years, had failed ignominiously in completing their
work. " Nary Eebel should they have left to tell the
tale." But by degrees their wrath subsided; and the
next heard of them was that the whole bunch — thir-
teen in all — were candidates for Governor.
A new enemy had appeared on the political field,
Andrew Johnson was then President, and his policy
on reconstruction did not suit them. His home was in
the South, where slavery had existed before the war,
and while he had been a stanch Union man and always
opposed to slavery, he had positive ideas as to what the
political status of the Freedmen should be.
On the eighteenth of March, 1866, a Bill entitled
" An Act to protect all persons in the United States in
their civil rights, and furnish the means of their vindi-
cation," was passed by Congress and transmitted to
the President for his approval. This bill, among other
things, declared all persons of African descent, born
in this country, to be citizens of the United States, and
conferred upon such persons the right of suffrage. On
KANSAS IN THE SIXTIES — 1866 235
the twenty-seventh, for various reasons given, the Bill
was vetoed by President Johnson; and on April 9 it
was passed by Congress over the veto. This caused a
breach between the President and the Republican
party, which continued to widen until Articles of Im-
peachment were preferred against the President by the
House of Eepresentatives.
Senator Jas. H. Lane, of Kansas, voted for this Civil
Eights Bill on its original passage, but voted against
passing it over the President 's veto, and that set Kan-
sas on fire against the Senator. Indignation meetings
were held in Lawrence and other important towns,
disapproving of his vote on the veto message. This dis-
approval of his action in the Senate brought the Sena-
tor home, where he hoped to stay the tide of public
sentiment that had set in against him.
SUICIDE OF SENATOB LANE
He arrived in Lawrence June 16, but was coldly re-
ceived by his former friends. On the eighteenth he
made a speech in Topeka and endeavored to explain his
vote and justify his action. On the twentieth he started
back to Washington, but was taken sick at St. Louis
and returned to Leavenworth on the twenty-ninth,
stopping with his brother-in-law, General McCall, near
that city. On the first of July he shot himself with a
derringer, and died on the eleventh. Of this tragedy
The Leavenworth Conservative said :
On Sunday evening [July 1], being apparently in com-
parative good health and sound mind, Senator Lane rode out
with Mr. McCall from the Farm House. During the time
he made excuse to leave the carriage several times, seemingly
having a morbid plan of self-destruction, until, arriving at
a gate, McCall alighted to open it. As the latter reached the
gate, Senator Lane sprang from the carriage and, being then
in the rear of it, exclaimed " Good-bye, Mac! " and imme-
diately fired a pistol, the muzzle being placed in his mouth.
The ball struck the roof of the mouth and emerged from about
the upper centre of the cranium, having passed through the
236 KANSAS IN THE SIXTIES
brain and almost perpendicularly through the head. With
a convulsive spring into the air, the Senator fell, apparently
lifeless, to the earth. The evidently pulseless body was im-
mediately placed in the carriage by those accompanying —
McCall and Capt. Adams, a brother of Gen. Lane's son-in-
law — and taken to the house, and surgeons summoned as
speedily as possible, who proceeded to make examinations as
to the nature and extent of the wound. At present writing
(12M.) the Senator is still unconscious, and no hopes are en-
tertained of his recovery.
Thus ended the life of James H. Lane, who in many
ways was a remarkable man. He was born in Law-
renceburg, Indiana, June 22, 1814. He was Colonel of
the Third Indiana Infantry in the Mexican War ; Lieu-
tenant-Governor of Indiana, 1849 ; elected to Congress
in 1852; came to Kansas in 1855; participated in the
early struggles to make Kansas a Free State; was
elected to the United States Senate in April, 1861, and
reflected in January, 1865. While yet a Senator he
came home from Washington, organized a brigade, and
made an expedition to Osceola, Missouri. But being a
United States Senator, and having no right, as such, to
command troops in the field, he retired from the army
at an early date and resumed his place in the Senate.
At his death in 1866 the duty devolved on me of ap-
pointing his successor. That, in turn, caused many
statesmen, in embryo or otherwise, to stand up and take
notice. They all wanted the appointment, and some of
the applicants pressed their claims with a tenacity of
purpose disgusting in the extreme.
After carefully considering the matter, I appointed
Edmond G. Ross, of Lawrence, who was subsequently
elected to the position by the State Legislature. Ross,
himself, had recommended the appointment of another
man, but I knew him to be an honest, straightforward
soldier of sterling worth and unflinching courage ; and
on that account he was appointed. I had seen him on
the field of battle amid shot and shell that tried men's
souls, and I knew he could be trusted.
KANSAS IN THE SIXTIES 1866 237
The appointment of Ross was well received by the
people generally and especially by the Kansas soldiers
who had served with him in the field and those who had
known him before the war. At the time of his appoint-
ment lie was editor of The Lawrence Daily Tribune,
and a steadfast Republican. Nevertheless his appoint-
ment did not please all the " statesmen " who had re-
mained at home during the war and had been playing
politics for their own personal benefit.
They could see why the appointment was bad ; and
so seeing, they joined forces with the mugwumps and
Anti-War Democrats and turned themselves loose on
the open prairie to tell the people what to do. The
State administration, in their estimation, was a total
failure, and must be suppressed by the nomination of
some one of themselves for Governor. Otherwise, they
would unite all opposition and smash the Republican
party. There were just thirteen of these political
patriots, each one of whom was a candidate for Gover-
nor, and most of whom had been standing candidates
since the admission of the State into the Union.
After an all-summer campaign, made by these self-
sacrificing statesmen, while I was on the border en-
deavoring to protect the frontier settlers against hos-
tile Indians and attending to the duties of the office in
other parts of the State, the delegates to the State Con-
vention were elected; and on September 5, 1866, the
Convention assembled at Topeka.
BE-ELECTED GOVERNOR
The Convention was called to order by Jacob Stot-
ler, of the State Central Committee, and Dr. J. P. Root,
late surgeon of the Second Kansas Cavalry, was elected
President. It was composed of eighty-two delegates,
of whom the thirteen mad warriors, who had been
snuffing the battle from afar, had eighteen votes. On
the first ballot I received sixty-four votes, and on the
second was unanimously nominated for a second term.
238 KANSAS IN THE SIXTIES
For a while some of the defeated candidates sulked in
their tents, but finally came out and pretended to sup-
port the ticket. It was elected November 6, by majori-
ties ranging from 9,335 to 11,580; my majority being
11,218.
For the sake of harmony in the Republican party,
the Convention allowed two of the patriots whose feel-
ings had been lacerated by the appointment of Ed. Ross,
to be placed on the ticket ; and it so happened that the
majority at the polls for these two excellent statesmen
fell below that of all other candidates on the ticket.
Nevertheless they were elected; and thereafter the
terms upon which the Confederate armies were allowed
to surrender were not so bad after all. At least we
heard no more about a renewal of the war and the ex-
termination of the Rebels.
The election over and the wild Indians of the plains
having returned to their winter quarters, the people
of Kansas, for the first time in their history, felt secure
in every part of the State. Immigration was pouring
in from the East ; railroads were ploughing their way
westward, and new towns were springing up in all
directions.
During the Summer of 1866, John G. "Whittier, the
bachelor poet, came out to Leavenworth to deliver a
lecture. Before leaving Boston he expressed a desire
to meet some of his bachelor friends while in Kansas.
Judge Bailey of the Supreme Court, was both a bache-
lor friend and an admirer of the poet, and hence, anx-
ious to meet him.
As guests of the Judge, Mr. Holman, a merchant of
Topeka, and myself accompanied him to Leavenworth ;
met Mr. Whittier, and had the pleasure of hearing him
recite one of his favorite poems. The Poet, being him-
self a bachelor, could speak from the record ; and while
he did not seem in haste to take his own medicine, he
gave it to Judge Bailey and his party in liberal doses.
In vivid colors he pictured the lonely home on the
KANSAS IN THE SIXTIES 1866 239
prairie, the author's den in the city, the professor in
college, the judge's seat on the bench, and the chair of
state — occupied by bachelors. And yet, what he said
was not so much as the way he said it. We, the Topeka
contingent, knew quite well that we were not doing our
duty, but being somewhat timid, we hesitated about en-
listing in the Benedictine army.
A DOUBLE WEDDING
However, the great Poet set us a-thinking, and ere
long three bachelors bowed to the inevitable and sur-
rendered at discretion. Mr. Holman and I had been
selected by Judge Bailey to lead the advance, and he
was to follow within supporting distance. For further
particulars of this engagement I must refer the reader
to a contemporary report, which appeared in The To-
peka Record, as follows :
THE DAUGHTER OF A GOOD MOTHER
Married — On Tuesday evening, 27th inst., 8:30 o'clock,
at Grace Church, by the Rt. Rev. Bishop T. H. Vail, assisted
by Revs. Lee and Reynolds, Gov. Samuel J. Crawford, and
Miss Isabel M. Chase.
At the same time and place, by the same, Mr. Isaac H.
Holman, and Miss Helen E. Tuttle. All of Topeka.
It gives us pleasure to chronicle the above.
Our worthy Governor, and honest Merchant, have taken
a very important step in life in leading to the hymeneal
altar two of the fairest and purest daughters of the land.
The church was crowded. The ceremony was very inter-
esting and impressive. The Bishop pronounced them man
and wife, and then friends and acquaintances came forward
to take the happy parties by the hand, and perhaps imprint
a kiss on the brow of the new-made wife, and say those lov-
ing things suitable to the occasion. A.n hour was spent thus,
when the bride-grooms took their departure for the respective
homes of the brides, there to receive presents and make ready
for the intended bridal trip.
At eleven o'clock, p. m., there were fifty-two of us took
a special car accompanying the bridal-party as far as Wyan-
240 KANSAS IN THE SIXTIES
dotte, reaching that place just as the rosy god of morn was
showing the tips of his golden wings.
It would be impossible for us to put on paper the many
good things that were said and performed by the bridal
party, Major T. J. Anderson, master of ceremonies, being as-
sisted by Gen. John Ritchie, Col. Lawrence, J. W. Steele,
Esq., John Fletcher, S. B. Remington, C. C. Kellam, and in
fact by the entire party.
Gov. Crawford expressed himself to the effect, that he
was glad it was over; having reference, we presume, to the
" ceremony " that bound him to the woman of his choice.
Time passed swiftly. Songs and merriment, with now
and then a basket of cake, or a glass of ' ' native, ' ' around the
circle, and all was enjoyment.
Cakes, nuts, fruit, candies, and " native " were stored in
abundance in the rear end of the coach, and the waiters were
busy from the time we stepped in at Topeka until we stepped
out at "Wyandotte.
If, perchance, some unlucky individual happened to close
their eyes, ' ' tickets ! ' ' would ring in their ears.
Woman was there:
"Whose form and whose soul
Are the spell and the light of each path we pursue:
Whether sunn'd in the Tropics or chilled at the Pole,
If Woman be there, there is happiness too."
And without the presence of woman, the affair would
have been tame, indeed.
Judge Bailey was there, too, and his presence and counsel
contributed much to the general mirthfulness and joyous-
ness of the occasion.
At Wyandotte we took breakfast, gave a look around the
town, and were visited by ex-Governor J. P. Root, and W. W.
Wright, General Superintendent of the Union Pacific Rail-
way, E. D. These gentlemen seemed well pleased, and ex-
erted themselves to please. Gov. Root is one of Topeka 's
oldest and warmest friends. Mr. Wright is much of a gen-
tlemen, and it is said that he has no superior as a successful
railroad-man.
After breakfast we escorted the bridal party to the de-
pot, and after affectionate leave-takings, took the return
train for Topeka.
KANSAS IN THE SIXTIES — 1866 241
Although there was not as much vivacity exhibited on the
return trip, yet there was a fund of enjoyment, and luck-
less he or she who cared not to participate. We owe a num-
ber of good ones, in return for several already received, and
they will be paid in due season, with interest compounded.
The wedded parties were happy, and took the sallies of
their friends with the best of humor.
The following named persons composed the outfit.
Others were invited but failed to come to time.
Gov. Samuel J. Crawford and wife; Isaac H. Holrnan
and wife; T. J. Anderson and wife; Col. Ritchie and wife;
Col. Lawrence and wife ; Col. Veale ; Judge Safford and wife ;
J. F. Cummings and wife; Dr. Martin and wife; C. C. Kel-
lam and wife ; B. P. Kellam and wife ; Fielding Johnson and
wife ; Mr. Sheldon and wife ; S. R. Remington and wife ; Col.
Rankin and wife; and Judge Miller, of Lawrence, and Miss
Montgomery, Miss Case, Misses Otis, Mrs. Elmore, Mrs.
Munro, Miss Ward, Miss Butterfield, Miss Elmore, Miss
Fitzgerald, Miss Torrey, Dr. Kennedy and sister; and Jake
Smith, G. W. Anderson, J. W. Steele, Jno. Fletcher, Mr.
Newson, Mr. Lakin, Geo. Chase. We may have missed the
names of some of the party, and if so, shall be pleased if we
are corrected.
There were no accidents, and it seemed to us that the
party could not have been better chosen for enjoyment. And
we only hope that we may be successful in getting an in-
vitation to the next, even if the joyousness were cut down
one-half. Who comes next? Let the good work go on until
not one is left to tell of single blessedness.
The following account is from The Topeka Ledger:
THE DOUBLE WEDDING
For once rumor proved correct. It had been whispered
around town for several days that there would be two couple
married in the Episcopal Church Tuesday evening, Nov. 27.
At early candle light last evening the church was lighted,
and soon crowds began to gather. The time for the ceremony
was 8 P. M., but the house was as full as it could hold at
least an hour previous to that time. Nearly all the ladies
secured seats, but the gentlemen were obliged to stand. The
242 KANSAS IN f HE SIXTIES
aisles, windows, and galleries were packed. Every inch of
standing-room had been used. At ten minutes past eight,
Samuel J. Crawford, Governor of Kansas, and Isabel M.
Chase, daughter of Enoch Chase, Esq., of this city, came into
the church, together with Isaac H. Holman and Miss Helen
Tuttle. Both couples at once proceeded to the altar, and
were united in the holy bonds of wedlock. Bishop Vail of
the Diocese of Kansas, was the officiating clergyman, assisted
by Kev. J. N. Lee of Grace Church and Rev. Mr. Reynolds of
Ft. Riley.
The brides were dressed precisely alike, being dressed in
very rich white silk, with long lace veils extending nearly to
the feet and adjusted to the head with a bridal wreath of
orange blossoms. They wore no ornaments, but their appear-
ance was neat, chaste, and very becoming. After receiving
congratulations from friends, the wedding party, with fifty
or sixty invited guests started for Wyandotte in a car kindly
ordered by the U. P. R. R. Co. The party, except the newly
married couples, are to return to-day. Gov. Crawford and
Mr. Holman, with their ladies, are going to Saint Louis, to
be absent about a week. The bride of the Governor has
lived in this city since 1855, her father being one of the first
party who settled Topeka. She is known and beloved by all
of our old citizens. She is popular with old and young. Mr.
Holman is a merchant in Topeka, where he has lived for a
number of years, and bears an excellent reputation. Miss
Tuttle was formerly from Buffalo, New York, but for a num-
ber of years has been a member of Col. Veale 's family. She,
too, has many warm friends here, having endeared herself to
a large circle of acquaintances.
Following in the wake of this memorable event,
Judge Bailey, true to his promise, came under the yoke
and completed the triple alliance. Whatever the effect
on Holman and myself may have been, one thing is cer-
tain — a noticeable improvement was thereafter plainly
visible in the methods, habits, and customs of the
Judge. He was always a grand good man, but when
brought under a proper state of discipline, he was one
of the very best.
And so it is with many old bachelors of the present
GEN. AND MRS. SAMUEL J. CRAWFORD
(Gen. Crawford at 32 years of age)
KANSAS IN THE SIXTIES 1866 243
day. What they ought to do most of all things, is to
select good and true partners for life and live as God
intended. Every man of proper age should have a
home of his own. It would be best for him and better
for the young ladies who are now struggling to support
themselves. There is no place like home, and especially
should this be true of young ladies of marriageable age.
That they can for a while support themselves and
do certain kinds of work as well, if not better, than the
men, no one will dispute. But that is not the question
and should not enter into the equation. Everybody
knows that the end of such a life is bitter ; and yet the
good people, as a rule, are doing, unwittingly, every-
thing they can to encourage it. Their policy tends to
entice and wean young girls from home and then fit
them for work that young men could do ; while the girls
should be perfecting themselves under their mother's
care for domestic duties, preparatory to getting
married.
A neat comfortable home and pleasant family should
be the object of all the young people. That was the
prevailing sentiment in Kansas at the close of the Civil
War and for many years thereafter, and as a result, we
now have a State peopled with good American citizens
of sterling worth.
STATE UNIVERSITY
On the twelfth of September, 1866, the first session
of the State University opened with three professors
and forty students. The Board of Regents consisted of
Charles Robinson, J. D. Liggett, W. A. Starrett, T. C.
Sears, J. S. Emery, D. P. Mitchell, S. 0. Thacher, C. B.
Lines, J. L. Wever, E. M. Bartholow, G. W. Paddock,
and C. K. Holliday.
STATE AGRICULTURAL COLLEGE
This all-important institution, having been endowed
by Congress with a grant of ninety thousand acres of
244 KANSAS IN THE SIXTIES
land, and permanently located by an Act of the Legisla-
ture, approved February 16, 1863, was in due time
opened under the auspices of the State.
The new State Board of Regents consisted of Judge
L. D. Bailey, S. D. Houston, J. G. Reaser, John Pipher,
T. H. Baker, W. L. Woodworth, R. Cordley, E. Gale,
and D. Earhart. In the fall of 1866 the College opened
with a suitable corps of professors and one hundred
and fifty students.
Meantime work on the new State Normal School
building and other State buildings was rapidly
progressing.
Thus the first term of my administration glided by
and on into the new year, with fair, if not flattering
prospects, for the future of our proud young com-
monwealth.
CHAPTER XVHI
SECOND TERM
IMPORTANT LAWS PROTECTION FOR THE FRONTIER — HOS-
TILE INDIANS.
THE year 1867 opened brightly. On the first of Jan-
uary the new Normal School building at Emporia,
having been erected by the State, was dedicated to the
higher education of the youth of Kansas. This splen-
didly equipped institution, upon which depends largely
the efficiency of our public schools, shows to some ex-
tent the wisdom of those who laid the foundation for
our educational system.
On the eighth of January the Legislature assembled,
organized, and notified the Governor that the two
Houses were ready for business.*
This Legislature, although somewhat disturbed at
the beginning, by reason of having two United States
Senators to elect, settled down to steady work at an
early date. On the twenty-third of January the Sena-
tors were elected — the Hon. S. C. Pomeroy for six
years, and the Hon. E. G. Boss for four years. I had
previously appointed Ross as Senator Lane's successor,
and as a matter of course was gratified to have the ap-
pointment ratified by the Legislature.
IMPORTANT LAWS
During the session many important laws were en-
acted, among which were the following:
An act to define the boundaries of Cowley, McPher-
son, Sedgwick, Sumner, Jewell, Mitchell, Lincoln, Ells-
*See Appendix.
245
246 KANSAS IN THE SIXTIES
worth, Rice, Reno, Harper, Smith, Osborn, Russell,
Barton, Stafford, Pratt, Barbour, Phillips, Rooks,
Ellis, Rush, Pawnee, Kiowa, Comanche, Norton, Gra-
ham, Trego, Ness, Hodgeman, Ford, and Clark
Counties.
An act changing the boundaries of Cherokee, Craw-
ford, Neosho, Labette, Wilson, Butler, Marion, Dick-
inson, Howard, Greenwood, and Montgomery Counties.
An act ratifying the XIV Amendment to the Consti-
tution of the United States.
An act establishing the Blind Asylum at Wyandotte.
An act to aid Kansas State Agricultural College.
An act relating to the State Capitol Building.
An act to provide for building bridges.
An act to establish the Sixth, Seventh, Eighth, and
Ninth Judicial Districts of the State of Kansas.
An act relating to the revision of the laws.
An act to prohibit the selling of intoxicating liquors
in the unorganized counties of the State of Kansas.
And many other acts of importance to the State.
On the fifteenth of January, 1867, the oath of office
was administered to the new State officers by the Hon.
S. A. Kingman, Chief Justice of the State Supreme
Court.
With the new administration came a number of
changes in the Field and Staff of the Governor. Col-
onel T. J. Anderson, Adjutant General, having com-
pleted the record of Kansas troops in the Civil War,
resigned, to engage in other work. Colonel D. E. Bal-
lard, Quartermaster General, resigned, to accept a posi-
tion as one of the Commissioners to audit and correct
the Price Raid Claims. Colonel W. F. Cloud, resigned,
to engage in business at Carthage, Missouri.
To fill these several vacancies, the following gentle-
men were appointed, namely :
J. B. McAfee, Adjutant-General.
J. G. Haskell, Quartermaster General.
Harrison Kelley, Major General.
SECOND TERM 247
Cyrus Leland, Brigadier-General, vice Kelley promoted.
Ward Burlingame, Private Sec., vice McAfee transferred.
On the seventeenth of January, 1867, General W.
W. Wright, Superintendent of the Kansas Pacific Rail-
road, reported to the Governor that the work on that
road was commenced at Wyandotte in August, 1863;
forty miles was completed in 1864; one hundred and
ten miles, in 1865-66, with the track then laid to a point
twenty miles west of Fort Biley. He also stated that
Shoemaker, Miller & Co. were to complete the road to
the two hundred and eighty-fifth mile-post during the
year.
On the ninth of February the Legislature appointed
a Committee to investigate the Senatorial election.
After a careful investigation the Committee concluded
their report as follows :
And while this testimony is not sufficient of itself to au-
thorize your Committee to make a special recommendation
for definite action on the part of the Senate, they here record
their conviction that money has been used for the base
purposes of influencing members of the Legislature to dis-
regard the wishes of their constituents, and to vote as money
dictated; and regret their failure to procure the evidence
necessary to demonstrate the facts to the people of the States.
After the Senatorial election the work of the Legis-
lature moved along smoothly until the Bill for defining
the boundaries of certain counties and establishing new
counties in Central Kansas was introduced. Then a
war to the knife began. This bill, of itself, was right
and necessary, as all the members knew.
The counties along our southern border from Cher-
okee to the Arkansas River were twenty-five by fifty
miles in breadth and length, and the occupants wanted
them cut in halves, and counties of the usual size cre-
ated. The country west of Marion and Saline Counties,
extending across the State and westward, was unor-
ganized and beyond the reach of our civil authorities.
248 KANSAS IN THE SIXTIES
It was a rendezvous for thieves, robbers, and roving
bands of Indians. Eanchmen were there with herds of
taxable property; and traders, whose principal busi-
ness was to supply hostile Indians and outlaws gener-
ally with arms, ammunition, and bad whiskey.
To reach these knights of the plains and bring them
within reach of the law, I prepared, and had intro-
duced in the House of Eepresentatives, a Bill establish-
ing and defining the boundaries of some thirty-six new
counties, and attaching them to organized counties
along the western border for judicial purposes.
While this all-important Bill was pending before the
Legislature, a Committee of five of the leading citizens
of Leavenworth came to Topeka and had introduced
in the Senate a Bill authorizing the State to endorse
and guarantee the payment of the interest on five mil-
lion dollars of the bonds of Leavenworth City, to be is-
sued for internal improvement purposes.
Soon after their arrival, the Committee submitted
their proposition to me and asked for help. After lis-
tening to their arguments, I called attention to a clause
in our Constitution which says : ' ' The State shall never
be a party in carrying on any works of internal im-
provements." To this they replied with the usual
argument, that * * the State, of course, would never have
to pay anything," and that they were going to make
the effort at any rate. I told them that they could use
their own judgment, but that they must figure from the
beginning on a two-thirds vote in the Legislature be-
cause I would veto their Bill if it should be presented
to me.
In some way these gentlemen, who seemed to think
the Legislature could override the Constitution, dis-
covered that the State authorities were exceedingly
anxious to have the new County Bill enacted into a law,
and immediately they set about to defeat that Bill or
else force its friends to support their wildcat scheme
but in this they reckoned without their host. The
SECOND TERM 249
County Bill was passed, and their pet measure went
the way of all bad bills in that Legislature. The de-
feat of that audacious raid on our Constitution saved
the State from bankruptcy, and the Legislature from
disgrace.
On the twenty-sixth of February, in pursuance of
law, I appointed S. A. Riggs, James McCahon, and
John M. Price as Commissioners to codify the laws of
the State.
On the third of March the Legislature, having com-
pleted its work, adjourned sine die, and the brave boys
who had stood resolutely in defence of the Constitution
and fought manfully for such legislation as they be-
lieved to be essential, returned to their respective
homes conscious of having done their duty.
That Legislature, having created four new Judicial
Districts, I immediately thereafter appointed as Judges
of the Courts so created :
D. P. Lowe, of Linn County, Sixth District.
Wm. Spriggs, of Anderson County, Seventh District.
Jas. Humphrey, of Riley County, Eighth District.
S. N. Wood, of Chase County, Ninth District.
Soon after the adjournment of the Legislature, I
proceeded to New York and disposed of State bonds
which had been authorized to aid in pushing forward
the work on our new State Capitol and other public
buildings. This duty having been performed, I went
over to Washington to arrange with the Secretary of
War and the General of the Army for the protection
of our frontier settlements, overland travel, and trans-
portation to the West, and working parties engaged in
the construction of the Union Pacific Railroad, E. D.
(subsequently designated as the Kansas Pacific), then
pushing its way across the plains westward.
PKOTECTION FOB THE FRONTIER
On arriving at Washington I found the War De-
partment and General Grant — that matchless soldier
250 KANSAS IN THE SIXTIES
who extended the right hand of peace to the fallen foe
at Appomattox — ready and anxious to suppress the
hostile Indians and insure a lasting peace on our fron-
tier. They already had General Hancock, with such
regular troops as could be spared, in the field near
Fort Dodge, Kansas, to intercept the Indians moving
northward from their winter haunts.
After completing arrangements for cooperating
with the War Department and General Grant to the
fullest extent, I called on the Secretary of the Interior,,
whose Department had charge of Indian affairs, gen-
erally. I found the Secretary unadvised, if not indif-
ferent, to everything pertaining to the wild, hostile
tribes. He assumed to know all about them and politely
informed me that if there should be any trouble, he
would attend to the matter at the proper time.
I told him in language not to be misunderstood, that
the proper time was then; that the Cheyennes, Arapa-
hoes, Apaches, Kiowas, and Comanches were already
in Kansas, committing depredations, and that General
Hancock was at that time (April, 1867) in the field with
his troops scattered along the Arkansas Valley, en-
deavoring to hold them back.
I also told him that his U. S. agents and licensed
traders had supplied these hostile Indians with food
and clothing during the past Winter, and with arms and
ammunition to be used against the frontier people of
Kansas during the Spring and Summer. I further told
him that the Government, through these vile creatures,
had been doing the same thing for three years and
more ; and that I thought it was about time to let up on
that particular humanitarian policy of the Interior
Department.
Gradually the Secretary began to take notice, and
finally agreed that no more arms or ammunition should
be issued to the wild tribes, while they were on the war-
path. But his promise was broken almost before I
reached Kansas.
SECOND TERM 251
Early in the Spring, bands of these Indians broke
through Hancock's lines on the Arkansas Eiver and
moved north to the Smoky Hill, Solomon, and Repub-
lican valleys, where they committed atrocities and out-
rages most brutal and barbarous. While they were
thus dodging the U. S. troops and ravaging the frontier
settlements and commerce of the plains, a vast amount
of Indian supplies, including arms and ammunition,
was shipped to Atchison, Kansas, under contract with
the Indian Office at Washington, and loaded into wag-
ons and started to the Southwest, to be issued to the
Cheyennes and Arapahoes, who were known to be on
the war-path.
The day the train (twelve loaded wagons) crossed
the Kansas River at Lawrence, I was notified, and also
informed of the arms and ammunition it contained. Im-
mediately upon receipt of this information, I tele-
graphed General Sherman at St. Louis, and told him
that if he did not take possession of the train and pre-
vent the issuing of the arms, ammunition, blankets, and
other supplies to the squaws and Indians in camp,
whose tribes were then committing depredations in
Kansas, I would burn the whole outfit before they
reached their destination. General Sherman imme-
diately sent a cavalry troop from Fort Riley, which cap-
tured and conveyed the train and supplies to Fort
Lamed, where they were held under guard until a
treaty was made with the Indians late in the fall of that
year.
HOSTILE INDIANS
When I returned from Washington, in April, 1867,
General Hancock was in the field with a handful of U.
S. troops, and the plains of Kansas were swarming with
bloodthirsty Indians. Early in the Spring, as had been
anticipated, the Indians began to concentrate their
forces for the purpose of a general war against the
whites, and also for the purpose of preventing the con-
252 KANSAS IN THE SIXTIES
stniction of the Pacific railroads. Having received
such information, I immediately notified Generals Sher-
man and Hancock of the same. In reply, I received the
following communication from General Hancock:
HEADQUARTERS DEPARTMENT OP THE MISSOURI,
IN THE FIELD, NEAR FORT DODGE, KANSAS,
April 37, 1867.
GOVERNOR S. J. CRAWFORD,
Topeka, Kansas:
SIR : I have the honor to acknowledge the receipt of your
communication, forwarding the letter from Mr. E. D.
Straight, dated Marion Centre, March 22d, 1867; also a
former petition of some citizens of southwest Kansas, asking
for protection from the Indians of the plains. You would
have received a reply from me before this time on this sub-
ject, but that the papers above referred to were prevented
from reaching me sooner on account of my having been
constantly moving since the 25th of March.
I have recently stationed a company of cavalry at Fort
Larned, with instructions to patrol the country in that vi-
cinity ; and about the first of May will have another company
of cavalry stationed on the Little Arkansas, to patrol the line
of that stream for the security of that region of country.
With the troops I have at my disposal at present, this is
about all I can accomplish in this matter, and I trust it
may be sufficient. Other movements of troops that are now
taking place against the Sioux and Cheyennes between
the Arkansas and Platte, will, no doubt, assist in keeping
the Indians of the plains quiet, and prevent incursions into
the settlements.
I am, sir, very respectfully, your obedient servant,
WINFIELD S. HANCOCK,
Major General U. S. A., Commanding.
In addition to the above letter I received also a copy
of an order detailing two companies to be stationed on
the northwestern frontier, with instructions to patrol
the country across from the Republican to the Solomon
and Saline Rivers; and soon thereafter I received in-
formation from the General, saying that another com-
SECOND TERM 253
pany had been stationed in the southwest, with instruc-
tions to protect and guard that portion of the State.
These companies, together with all other troops on
duty in this department, did everything in their power
to prevent Indian depredations ; but having a border of
two hundred miles in length, the public thoroughfares
from Kansas west, and the working parties on the Pa-
cific Kailroad, to protect, they were inadequate to a
work of such magnitude.
Portions of five tribes of hostile Indians — allied
for purposes of war and crime, thoroughly organized,
armed, and equipped, and regularly receiving their an-
nuities and other supplies from the Government, under
treaty stipulations — constituted the main force which
was operating with such deadly effect in Western
Kansas.
The hostile Indians, having succeeded in murdering
and scalping many men, women, and children, and cap-
turing or destroying property to the value of millions
of dollars, and in also completely blockading the routes
of travel (except when opened by military escort) from
Kansas to the mineral States and Territories west ; and
believing, as they had reason to believe, that they would
be sustained by the continued leniency of the Govern-
ment, became so emboldened as seriously to threaten
the destruction of our entire western border.
On the eighth of May I received a despatch from
the frontier as follows :
Gov. S. J. CRAWFORD,
Topeka, Kansas:
We, the undersigned citizens of the frontier, appeal to
you in behalf of our families, who are in danger of being
killed by the Indians.
On yesterday, a war party struck the settlements in
White Hock Valley, and killed two men and one woman, and
wounded one boy, who escaped to tell the sad story. Others
are missing; supposed to be captured or killed. Many fam-
ilies are leaving their homes, and cannot return unless they
254 KANSAS IN THE SIXTIES
have protection. We appeal to you for help and protection
against these merciless savages.
(Signed) GEO. W. GLOVER,
WM. NYE,
0. HUNTRESS,
and thirty-six others.
The above was endorsed as follows :
CLAY CENTER, May 8.
If you can do anything, do it promptly, that the settlers
may return to their homes, and save their stock and other
property.
N. GREEN,
Lieutenant-Governor.
Soon after the receipt of this despatch, petitions
numerously signed were received from the citizens of
the Republican, Solomon, and Smoky Hill Valleys, and
from Marion, Butler, and Greenwood Counties, detail-
ing murders and robberies committed by the Indians
all along the border, and asking for military protection.
In response to these and many other letters, despatches,
and petitions of similar import, received at the execu-
tive office almost daily, I ordered small detachments of
militia to the most exposed localities. But it was found
impossible to afford protection without calling out a
battalion of State troops.
While the State authorities were thus engaged in
an effort to restore quiet and protect the frontier set-
tlements, the United States officers on duy in the de-
partment were equally active, although the limited num-
ber of troops at their disposal was wholly inadequate
to prevent the frontier settlements from being rolled
back, and the lines of overland travel abandoned.
This situation grew rapidly worse until June, cul-
minating in a simultaneous attack by the Cheyennes,
Arapahoes, and Kiowas, upon the settlers in the Re-
publican, White Rock, Solomon, and Smoky Hill Val-
leys, and upon the grading and engineering parties on
SECOND TERM 255
the Kansas Pacific Railroad, west of Fort Harker, as
shown by the following despatches :
JUNCTION CITY, KAS., June 21, 1867.
GOVERNOR CRAWFORD:
Thos. Parks, one of our principal contractors, and three
other men, were killed by Indians on Tuesday. Gen. Smith
says we have all the protection he can give. Can you not
give us a regiment of infantry militia at once, to protect
our working parties and the frontier settlements?
R. M. SHOEMAKER,
General Supt. U. P. R. R., E. D.
On the twenty-fourth of June, the following was
received :
LEAVENWORTH, KANSAS, June 24, 1867.
HON. S. J. CRAWFORD, Governor of Kansas:
I have just returned from Fort Wallace, over the line of
the U. P. R. R., E. D. The Indians along the whole line are
engaged in their savage warfare. On Saturday, three more
of our men were killed and scalped. Our laborers, one thou-
sand or more, have been driven in. Unarmed men cannot be
expected to expose themselves to these savages. General Han-
cock is away west of Fort Wallace, so I cannot apply to him,
and I do not know where a despatch will reach General Sher-
man. In this emergency, I do not know to whom else to ap-
peal but to you. What can be done to put an end to these
atrocities ?
JOHN D. PERRY,
President U. P. R. R. Co., E. D.
On the same day, the above despatch, together with
the following, was transmitted to the Secretary of War :
TOPEKA, KANSAS, June 24. 1867.
HON. E. M. STANTON, Secretary of War,
Washington, D. C. :
I send you a copy of despatch from John D. Perry, Pres-
ident of the Union Pacific Railway Co., E. D., just received.
This road, west of Fort Harker, the routes of travel across
the plains, together with our frontier settlements, will all
have to be abandoned, if prompt and decisive measures are
not adopted. I can, within a short time, furnish the Gov-
256 KANSAS IN THE SIXTIES
eminent with a sufficient force to put an end to frontier de-
predations. Do you desire aid?
S. J. CRAWFORD,
Governor.
To this the Secretary replied:
WASHINGTON, D. C., June 27, 1867.
Gov. S. J. CRAWFORD,
Topeka :
Your despatch has been referred to General Grant, for
his action. Lieut.-General Sherman commander of the mil-
itary division of the Missouri, has immediate charge of
military operations against the Indians, with authority to
furnish all necessary supplies, and, upon your requisition,
will furnish arms, ammunition, and whatever is necessary.
E. M. ST ANTON,
Secretary of War.
On the twenty-fourth of June I received the follow-
ing despatch :
Our locating party, under Colonel Greenwood, was at-
tacked hy Indians, west of Monument Station, Saturday
morning. The Indians fought four hours for the possession
of the camp, but were finally repulsed. Our men killed two
Indians, but lost their stock.
R. M. SHOEMAKER.
Later, on the same day, the following was received :
GOVERNOR CRAWFORD:
The Indians have killed two more of our men, near Bun-
ker Hill Station, and driven the workmen all off the line.
Please send us arms and ammunition. Unless you send us
protection, our work must be abandoned.
R. M. SHOEMAKER.
On receipt of -the above, I immediately telegraphed
commanding officer at Fort Leavenworth, as follows :
TOPEKA, KANSAS, June 24, 1867.
COMMANDING OFFICER, FORT LEAVENWORTH, KANSAS:
Will you issue to the State ten thousand rounds of am-
SECOND TERM 257
munition? The Indians have attacked and driven back the
railroad men west of Harker.
S. J. CRAWFORD,
Governor.
June 28, the following was received:
LEAVENWORTH, June 28, 1867.
Gov. CRAWFORD:
The following despatch has just been received:
' ' FORT HARKER, June 28, 1867.
B. M. SHOEMAKER:
My camp was attacked by Indians yesterday, at 7 A. M.
We lost one man killed, and one badly wounded. Five In-
dians were killed.
J. B. BILEY,
Engineer. ' '
Unless we are promptly protected, all the men will be
driven off the work, and the citizens out of the country.
B. M. SHOEMAKER.
On the twenty-seventh of June General A. J. Smith
called on me for a battalion of volunteers, but on the
morning of the twenty-eighth the requisition was with-
drawn; whereupon I sent the following to Gen.
Sherman :
TOPEKA, June 28, 1867.
GEN. W. T. SHERMAN,
St. Louis, Mo. :
Gen. Smith this morning recalled his requisition for vol-
unteers. This leaves our frontier settlers, railroad men and
all others in western Kansas, exposed, and liable to be mur-
dered and scalped at any moment. What shall be done? I
cannot move against the Indians with militia, but will, if
desired, furnish the Government with a volunteer force suffi-
cient to put an end to these outrages. The Secretary of
War informs me that full power is vested in you, and the
management of the whole affair committed to your discretion.
If so, I do earnestly hope you will call out a volunteer force,
and move against the Indians at once.
S. J. CRAWFORD,
Governor.
258 KANSAS IN THE SIXTIES
In reply to this, the following despatch was
received :
ST. Louis, Mo., July 1, 1867.
Gov. S. J. CRAWFORD:
You may call out a volunteer battalion of six or eight
companies, to be at end of track on Saturday next. I will
come in person.
W. T. SHERMAN,
Lieutenant General.
On the same day came the following:
FORT LEAVENWORTH, KAN., July 1, 1867.
Gov. S. J. CRAWFORD:
Lieut. Gen. Sherman telegraphs me that he called on you
for six or eight companies of cavalry, to be at the end of
the railroad (Fort Harker) the last of this week. "Will have
an officer at Fort Harker to muster them as soon as notified
that they are ready. The companies will be entitled to one
lieutenant-colonel, two majors, eight captains, eight first
lieutenants, eight second lieutenants, and not less than sixty
privates, nor more than seventy-eight, to each company.
Arms and other supplies will be furnished at Fort Harker.
CHAUNCY MCKEVEB,
Brevet Brig. Gen., and A. A. G.
CALL, FOB STATE TROOPS
STATE OF KANSAS, EXECUTIVE OFFICE,
TOPEKA, July 1, 1867.
Whereas the central and western portions of the State of
Kansas are now, and have been for some time, overrun with
roving bands of hostile Indians; and whereas these Indians,
though claiming protection from the United States Govern-
ment, and regularly receiving their annuities in due form,
have, without cause, declared war upon the people of this
State; they have indiscriminately murdered, scalped, mu-
tilated and robbed hundreds of our frontier settlers and
other parties in Western Kansas, who were quietly attending
to their own legitimate affairs; they have almost entirely cut
off communication between Kansas and other Western States
and Territories ; the men employed in the construction of the
U. P. E. R., E. D., have been driven back, leaving many of
SECOND TERM 259
their number butchered and scalped upon the ground. Gen-
eral Sherman and other United States officers are doing all
in their power to suppress hostilities, but they have not a
sufficient force of United States troops to execute their design,
and have called upon me for a battalion of cavalry to aid
in the work. I shall, therefore, as speedily as possible, or-
ganize eight companies of volunteer cavalry, to be mustered
into the United States service for a period of six months,
unless sooner discharged. Said companies will be armed,
equipped and paid by the General Government, the same as
other troops in the United States service.
Recruiting officers will be appointed as soon as the names
of suitable persons can be forwarded to this office.
I appeal to all good citizens of this State to favor, fa-
ciliate, and aid this effort to protect the lives and property
of our frontier settlers.
S. J. CRAWFORD,
Governor of Kansas.
On the second of July the following was received :
FORT HARKER, July 2, 1867.
Gov. CRAWFORD:
Please telegraph me the number of companies and strength
of each, called for by Gen. Sherman, to arrive at this point
soon, that I may make necessary provisions for them.
A. J. SMITH,
Brev. Maj. Gen. U. S. A.
On the fifth the following was received :
FORT HARKER, July 5, 1867.
GOVERNOR CRAWFORD:
Arms and accoutrements have been forwarded from Leav-
enworth to this point, for the Kansas troops. Quartermas-
ter's and commissary stores are now arriving. The troops
will be mustered at this place by an officer sent from Leaven-
worth.
A. J. SMITH,
Brev. Maj. Gen. U. S. A.
Immediately after the proclamation, recruiting of-
ficers were appointed, and a battalion of four compa-
260 KANSAS IN THE SIXTIES
nies of cavalry hastily organized and mustered into the
U. S. Service at Fort Harker, Kansas, on July 15, 1867.
This battalion was designated as the Eighteenth Kan-
sas Cavalry, with Field and Line Officers.*
The officers had previously won their spurs by deeds
of daring during the Civil War ; and the enlisted men
were mostly veteran soldiers.
When the battalion was in line, being mustered into
service at Fort Harker, the cholera was raging in the
garrison and three of the Kansas boys were stricken
down while the oath was being administered. T^he re-
mainder, however, stood firm and when the ceremony
was over, marched off the parade ground with a steady
step.
Immediately on being mustered into service, Major
Moore took the field and went in red-hot pursuit of the
savage barbarians. He moved over to the Arkansas
Valley, and from there worked his way northward on
the trail of the hostiles, until they began to see the
handwriting on the wall.
He had about three hundred brave, determined sol-
diers ; and as he advanced, the roving bands began to
concentrate west of the settlements along the Smoky,
Solomon, and Eepublican Valleys. They called to their
assistance bands of the Sioux and Northern Cheyennes,
until their numbers were estimated at from eight hun-
dred to one thousand.
When advancing northward on the main trail of the
Southern Indians, Major Moore detached two compa-
nies of his battalion (Captains Barker and Jenness)
and sent them in pursuit of hostile bands that were
threatening the grading parties along the railroad west-
ward to Fort Harker, while he pushed northward be-
tween the settlements and other bands toward the Sol-
omon and Eepublican Rivers.
Major Elliott, with a battalion of the Seventh Cav-
alry, was in the field north of Hayes, and Captain
*See Appendix.
SECOND TERM 261
Armes, with his troop of the Tenth Cavalry, was ope-
rating on the Saline and Solomon Rivers in advance of
Moore and Elliott. As already stated, the Indians were
concentrating in force on the Solomon and Republican.
Evidently it was the intention of General Hancock
to concentrate his three columns gradually and strike
the Indians with his combined force, but Captain
Armes, who, as yet was widely separated from Moore
and Elliott, struck a large body of warriors in the Sa-
line Valley, and being reinforce.d with two companies
of the Eighteenth Kansas (Barker and Jenness), drove
them north to the Republican, where the Indians in
large numbers were concentrated.
Instantly a battle royal was on, which continued for
two days. Armes had about two hundred men in action
and the red-skins about eight hundred. The result of
this battle was briefly stated in a despatch from Gen-
eral Hancock as follows :
FORT HARKER, KANSAS, Aug. 26, 1867.
GOVERNOR CRAWFORD:
Capt. Armes, Tenth Cavalry, with one company of his
regiment and two companies of the Eighteenth Kansas Vol-
unteers, was attacked on the 21st inst., at noon, on the Re-
publican River, by a large force of Indians, reported to be
800 or 1,000 in number, and were engaged until the night of
the 22d. Our troops, about 150 in number, covering a wide
space of country, were finally forced to retire, with a loss of
three men killed and left on the field, and thirty-five
wounded, who were brought in. The command also lost
forty horses during the engagement. Capt. Armes reports
a large number of Indians killed and wounded; Lieut. Price
of the Eighteenth Kansas, says about 150. The command
encamped about three miles from Fort Harker last night.
Maj. Moore, of the Eighteenth Kansas, with the remainder of
the battalion, and Maj. Elliott, of the Seventh Cavalry, with
about two hundred men of that regiment, started this morn-
ing for the Indians.
WINFIELD S. HANCOCK,
Maj. Gen. U. S. A.
262 KANSAS IN THE SIXTIES
Captain Armes was an impetuous, daring young of-
ficer who could brook no delay. The Indians had been
dodging and baffling the troops all summer; and the
Captain, not knowing that they had concentrated in
f once, dashed in against five to one, and soon found him-
self on the defensive. Had he waited for Moore and
Elliott, or either of them, the Indians could have been
rounded up and much of the stolen property recap-
tured. A few days after this engagement, Major
Moore, with his battalion, struck a portion of these
same Indians and scattered them to the four winds.
The northern Indians returned to their own coun-
try, and the Cheyennes, Arapahoes, Kiowas, and Co-
manches retreated southward, committing depreda-
tions as they went. Their supply train having been
captured and taken to Fort Lamed in the summer by
General Sherman's order, they ran short of ammuni-
tion, blankets, and provisions, and hence, were not in
condition to continue on the war-path. Besides, the
troops were on the trail and they were endeavoring to
make good their escape. Their supplies from the Gov-
ernment having been cut off, and the Indian traders
having been warned not to furnish them any more guns,
ammunition, or other war material, they were in an un-
pleasant predicament,
CHAPTER XIX
COUNCIL AT MEDICINE LODGE
STATEMENT OF INDIAN DEPREDATIONS INDIAN DI-
PLOMACY TREATIES BAD OSAGES THANKSGIVING
PROCLAMATION.
DURING the Summer the Indians had raided the
frontier settlements northward to the Republican
River and routes of travel, westward to the Colorado
line. They had killed, wounded, and scalped a large
number of men, women, and children. They had robbed
and burned the homes of settlers; captured and de-
stroyed overland trains ; murdered the grading parties
on the Kansas Pacific Railroad; and committed other
atrocities too numerous to mention, — all with arms and
ammunition furnished them by United States Indian
agents and Indian traders.
The agents were under the control of the Indian Of-
fice at Washington, and it was largely through their
recommendation and misrepresentations that the
wicked policy then in vogue was adopted by the Gov-
ernment and persisted in by the Interior Department.
There, under the same Government, was the War De-
partment, with an army in the field, endeavoring to
suppress Indian hostilities, and at the same time, the
Interior Department, furnishing the same hostile In-
dians with supplies and munitions of war. Back of the
Interior Department was a gang of thieving Indian
agents in the West, and a maudlin sentimentality in the
East, derived from Cooper's novels and impressed
upon that Department by ignorant but well-meaning
humanitarians. Back of the War Department were the
263
264 KANSAS IN THE SIXTIES
Army in the field, the State authorities on the ground ;
the mutilated bodies of hundreds of frontier settlers;
and the prayers of many helpless and homeless women
and orphan children for protection, all along the
border.
Generals Hancock and A. J. Smith, and many other
reliable officers were in the field and kept the Govern-
ment at Washington well informed of the situation, but
their official reports had little weight in the Interior
Department, the fountainhead of all the trouble from
Indians that year. The report of a disreputable Indian
agent would take precedence in that Department over
the reports of army officers every time.
The train of supplies, en route to the Indians, which
was seized and taken to Fort Lamed by order of Gen-
eral Sherman, left the Indian women and children of
the war-parties without food and clothing, and the war-
riors with only the fl.TnnmTiit.inn they carried with them
when they went north in the Spring, and such as they
could buy from Indian traders. By seizing the train
above mentioned, which was said to contain fourteen
hundred pounds of ammunition, Sherman clipped the
wings of the Indian agents, and that left only the trad-
ers as the source of supply for the Indians on the war-
path. Gradually the traders were rounded up, and the
supply entirely cut off.
Being out of ammunition and retreating southward,
closely pursued by our troops, the Indians were met by
messengers from the Peace Commission and invited to
a general Council to be held on Medicine Lodge Creek
in South Central Kansas, early in October. This was
joyful news to the redskins, because Winter was ap-
proaching, and their families were destitute of almost
everything except buffalo meat.
They knew it meant general amnesty and a full par-
don of the crimes they had been committing ; they knew
they would be allowed to keep all the horses, mules, and
other property stolen or captured during the Spring
COUNCIL AT MEDICINE LODGE 265
and Summer; they knew they would receive food and
clothing for themselves and their families sufficient for
the Winter. Of course, they were ready and anxious
to meet the Great Father in Council and agree to what-
ever he might put on paper for them to sign.
The II. S. troops and the Kansas cavalry were called
off the trail and stationed at points of observation.
General Hancock returned to Fort Leavenworth, and
the " noble red men " moved on to the designated
Council grounds, with the scalps of white people dang-
ling on their belts as they rode into camp.
The Peace Commission that was to meet them and
treat with them at Medicine Lodge was composed of
the following gentlemen:
Hon. N. G. Taylor, Commissioner of Indian Affairs.
General W. S. Harney, U. S. Army.
General A. H. Terry, U. S. Army.
General C. C. Augur, U. S. Army.
General J. B. Sanborn, U. S. Army.
Senator J. B. Henderson, U. S. Senate.
Colonel S. F. Tappan, Citizen.
General Wm. T. Sherman was also a member of the
Commission, but was not able to attend this council.
By his invitation, however, the Hon. E. G. Ross, Dr.
J. P. Boot, Colonel J. K. Rankin, and I were present,
and to some extent participated in the council
proceedings.
STATEMENT OP INDIAN DEPREDATIONS
At the opening of the Council I submitted a state-
ment relative to Indian depredations on the frontier,
as follows:
EXECUTIVE OFFICE,
TOPEKA, KAN., Oct. 5, 1867,
HON. N. G. TAYLOR, Commissioner of Indian Affairs,
and President of the Peace Commission :
SIRS : By request I have prepared, and herewith submit
to your Board, the following statement relating to our Indian
troubles.
266 KANSAS IN THE SIXTIES
In this brief statement it is unnecessary to refer to the
cause of these troubles or rather to the origin of this war ; for
such it is and has been, since the Minnesota massacre of
1863.
The Sioux Indians, who committed such horrible out-
rages in that State, being driven out, immediately set about
forming an alliance with other wild tribes of the plains for
the purpose of a general war.
Emissaries were at once sent to the Cheyennes, Kiowas,
Apaches, and Comanches, with propositions which were
readily accepted by these tribes. A general war was agreed
upon, to be commenced as soon as arms and ammunition
could be procured.
The alliance thus formed, though comparatively weak at
first, has rapidly grown into a powerful army ; well organized,
armed, and equipped.
During the past three years, thousands of our people have
been murdered and scalped; hundreds of women captured
and outraged; and millions of property destroyed or stolen
by these red-handed fiends. Kansas alone has shared a large
portion of these and other outrages, to say nothing of those
committed upon the people of other States and Territories
bordering on the plains.
The following brief sketch will show a few of the atrocities
committed in Kansas and upon citizens of Kansas since 1865 :
" On the 26th day of July, 1865, Sergeant A. J. Custard,
with 26 men of the llth Kansas Cavalry, while escorting a
train to Platte Bridge, was surrounded and attacked by 1,500
Indians. After a desperate fight of three hours, his ammuni-
tion being expended and one-half of his men having fallen,
he was overpowered and taken. Custard was bound with
telegraph wire to the wheel of a wagon and burned alive.
The wounded were placed in the wagons and also burned alive.
Another man was tied by the wrists and swung to a telegraph
pole, and while in this position was cut from head to foot
and his nerves or sinews drawn out. The others were tor-
tured in a similar way ; some of them having their hands and
feet cut off while they were still living.
" The horses, arms, and clothing belonging to the men
were taken by the Indians, who afterwards boasted of the
manner in which Custard and his men were taken and tor-
COUNCIL AT MEDICINE LODGE 267
tured to death. This is but one of the great many attacks
made upon detachments of the llth Kansas during the year
1865. I refer to this instance to show that the Indians were
in force and intended war at that time.
During the same year they attacked a train with which
two of our best citizens and their families were crossing the
plains to Colorado. The Indians approached the train pro-
fessing to be friendly. After traveling along for two days
and when they had gained the confidence of all connected
with the train, at a given signal they made an attack and
murdered every white man but one who escaped. The two
women were taken prisoners; one of whom soon after made
her escape; the other was detained by the Indians and sub-
jected to the most outrageous treatment for seven months,
when she was ransomed by the Government upon the payment
of $3,000. The horrible treatment of this woman during
her captivity can only be described by herself.
" During the past three years the Comanche and Kiowa
Indians have captured and treated in a similar manner a
great many women and children, whom they have sold to
the Government through the instrumentality of their agent,
J. H. Leavenworth, who says his Indians are at peace and
have committed no depredations.
" Last year the frontier settlers on the Republican, the
Solomon, the Saline, and the Smoky Hill, were frequently
attacked and driven in by small bands of hostile Indians. In
May, 1866, they attacked a small settlement on the Republican
River, killing six men and capturing twenty-five head of
horses. They also attacked and captured a number of trains
on the Smoky Hill and Arkansas routes. Early last Spring
hostilities were resumed in the Republican Valley and also
on the Smoky Hill and Arkansas.
" In May an attack was made upon the settlers on White
Rock, west of Lake Sibley. Three men and one boy were
killed and scalped, and one boy wounded, who made his
escape while the Indians were scalping his father. Two wo-
men were taken prisoners; one of whom was outraged by a
number of Indians and then killed and scalped; the other
was taken away to suffer a worse fate and has not since been
heard of.
" During the same month an attack was made upon
the settlers in the Solomon and Saline valleys, in which a
268 KANSAS IN THE SIXTIES
number of persons, including men, women, and children, were
killed and scalped and a large amount of property either car-
ried away or destroyed.
" About the 1st of June last, a small party of Indians
made another raid into the Saline Valley and murdered
the family of Mr. Thompson, consisting of his wife and four
children. Mr. Thompson, himself, being a few rods from the
house when the attack was commenced, escaped while the In-
dians were murdering his wife and children.
" About the middle of June the Indians in force, made
an attack upon working parties on the railroad, and upon
freighters and others along the Smoky Hill, killing a number
of men and capturing most of the stock on that line. On the
27th of the same month, about fifty Indians attacked the
working parties at Wilson's Creek, killing John Kestler, an
engineer, and wounding a number of employees. On the
same day they attacked a man by the name of Thompson on
the Smoky Hill, and captured and drove away a portion of his
stock. Mr. Thompson has been on the plains since 1832; is
perfectly familiar with the different tribes of Indians, and
says those making this attack were Cheyennes and Kiowas.
" In the month of July they killed and scalped two men
near Downer's Station, killed and scalped one man near Fos-
sil Creek, and killed and scalped one man near Walker's
Creek. On the 28th fifty Indians attacked Clinton and
Campbell's camp (contractors on the road ten miles east of
Hays), killed and scalped seven men, including the foreman,
and captured most of the stock. On the 30th the Station
at Big Creek was attacked, and forty head of horses and
mules captured.
" August 5th Mr. Fish, a contractor with twenty-three
men, was attacked ten miles west of Hays by four hundred
Indians and driven back three miles to a station, losing a
number of his men wounded, and a portion of his stock
captured. Same day Captain Neeley's camp fifteen miles
west, was attacked by two hundred Indians, who after a
severe fight of two hours, were repulsed. Damage not
reported. On the same day, a pacty of one hundred and
fifty Indians attacked Mr. Logan twenty miles west of Hays ;
camp taken and burned, and stock all captured. They also
on the same day attacked the respective camps of Holihen,
Quinn, Harvey and Todd, and Hall, capturing their stock,
burning their camps, and driving off all the workmen.
COUNCIL AT MEDICINE LODGE 269
" August 7th, they attacked the camp of Sharp and
Shaw; killed and wounded a number of men, and captured
thirt' -two head of horses and mules.
" August 8th, they attacked Mr. Wicks with an engi-
neering party, west of Hays, wounding one of his men. Same
day a party of one hundred again attacked Mr. Fish and
party, driving them off the work.
" I should have stated in the proper connection that on
the first of August the Indians attacked Campbell's camp
near the North Fork of Big Creek; killed seven men, and
captured nine head of stock. Same day they attacked the
station of the Overland Stage Company at Big Creek ; killed
and wounded a number of persons, and captured thirty head
of stock.
" There were many other depredations committed during
the month of August — on the Smoky Hill, Arkansas, Repub-
lican, and Platte — all of which can be easily ascertained by
your board if it is desired. Since it was known to the
Indians that the Peace Commissioners were en route to meet
them in Council, our people suffered more from them than at
any previous time.
" September 7th, they killed and scalped Frank Malone,
a trader on Cow Creek, twenty-six miles west of Ellsworth,
after which they sacked and burned his store.
" September 12th, W. G. & John Williams, while making
hay eight miles west of Ellsworth, were attacked by fifteen
Indians, wounded, and barely made their escape. Their
house was robbed and one team captured. The same day
they obstructed the railroad seven miles west of Ellsworth
and fired into the train. The arrows used were those of the
Kiowa Indians.
" September 14th, the Indians held the road west of
Hays during the day. Same day the camp of Mr. Logan, a
contractor, was attacked, and a portion of the stock captured.
" September 15th, Mr. Robinson's train was attacked and
a portion of his stock captured near Hays. Same day, Lieut.
Howard, 5th Infantry, with a train between Hays and Har-
ker, was attacked, and twenty-five head of stock and other
property captured. Same day Mr. Logan's working party
was again surrounded by a large force of Indians, who held
them in their works for three days. No report of the killed
and wounded. Same attacked Mr. Haller's ranch and cap-
tured most of his stock.
270 KANSAS IN THE SIXTIES
" September 19th, Parks, a contractor, forty-five miles
west of Hays, was attacked and himself and one of his men
killed, and another wounded ; a portion of his stock captured.
" While these and many other outrages were being com-
mitted on the Smoky Hill, the suffering on the Republican
and Arkansas routes was much worse.
" September 8th, Powers and Newman's train was
attacked by three hundred Indians twenty miles east of Fort
Dodge ; four men killed and a number wounded ; one wagon
and team captured. Same day a Mexican train was attacked,
and two hundred mules captured. About the same time
Kitchen's train was attacked seventeen miles east of Dodge,
and four wagons, loaded with ordnance stores, captured and
burned; one man killed.
" About the twentieth of September they attacked a
Mexican train belonging to Frank Hunning, near Fort Zarah,
capturing five wagons and all the stock, and killing one
man and one woman. About the same time a hay party
near Dodge was attacked; one man killed and one team
captured.
" September 24th, the Indians captured all the stock of
three heavily loaded trains en route to New Mexico. This
occurred thirty miles west of Fort Dodge. About the same
time Gen. Marcy and Gen. Carlton, with an escort of one
company, were attacked by three hundred Indians; one man
killed and Lieut. Williams severely wounded. Also about
the same time and place, Mr. Kitchen's train was attacked,
and fifty mules captured. Also Gen. Wright's surveying
party, with an escort of one company, where ten men were
killed and wounded."
And so I might go on referring to deeds of atrocity com-
mitted by the Indians during the past three years; but it
seems as though the above, in addition to those heretofore
reported, and those committed in other States and Terri-
tories, ought to be enough to convince our Congress, as well
as this Peace Commission, that prompt and decisive
measures should be at once adopted to punish the Indians
for what they have done, and secure peace in the future.
The present policy of the Government, which is to
encourage the Indians in the most bloody and atrocious
crimes, which none but these savages are susceptible of com-
mitting, has been tolerated long enough.
COUNCIL AT MEDICINE LODGE 271
It is a common saying among the Indians, that the more
murders they commit, and the more property they capture
and destroy, the more presents they will receive from the
Government; and that capturing women and children, and
selling them to the Government, is more profitable than steal-
ing horses. This is virtually paying the Indians — and they
so understand it — a reward for every scalp taken and a
premium for every woman and child captured.
While the Indians of the plains have been murdering and
harassing our people on the west, the Osage Indians have
been committing depredations along our southern border.
They have during the past twelve months stolen over two
hundred head of horses and other stock from settlers near
their reservation. They have committed a number of mur-
ders and other outrages.
Their agent, Snow, against whom charges have hereto-
fore been repeatedly preferred and suppressed, is notori-
ously unfit and disqualified for the position; and I attribute
all the troubles arising from these Osage Indians to him
directly. From the time the last payment was made in the
Fall of 1866 until within a few weeks past, he had not visited
their reservation, and not then until he was driven to them
through fear of being reported and dismissed.
During the Summer a portion of Agent Snow's traders
have been supplying the Osage Indians with arms and
ammunition, which were doubtless taken out and sold by
them to the wild Indians who have been on the war path.
Their stolen horses, or a portion of them, were exchanged
with the hostile Indians for Government horses and mules
and other captured property, of which there is a large
amount in the Osage nation at the present time. Had their
agent remained with them, these and other outrages might
easily have been prevented.
In view of these facts and for the purpose of preventing
further depredations and keeping peace between these
Indians and our frontier settlers, I would most respectfully,
but earnestly, ask that he be removed from the position of
agent. I have notified the chiefs of this tribe that I should
hold them responsible, not only for the outrages heretofore
committed, but for the conduct of their Indians in the future ;
that if further depredations were committed, they would be
punished.
272 KANSAS IN THE SIXTIES
J. H. Leavenworth, agent for the Comanche and Kiowa
Indians, is also a bad man. His traders at the mouth of the
Little Arkansas River, and wherever else he may have them
stationed, have been supplying the wild Indians of the plains
with everything necessary to enable them to prosecute the
war against our people. Hundreds of our citizens have been
murdered and scalped, and thousands of dollars' worth of
property captured or destroyed by Indians who received
their supplies from Leavenworth and his traders. Some of
them deny having furnished arms and ammunition for such
purposes, and it may be possible that they are not all guilty
of that damnable crime. If they are not, they have been
furnishing them with other supplies which is equally as bad.
If the present Peace Commissioners succeed in making
a treaty with the hostile Indians and decide upon still further
trying the present policy, I would respectfully suggest the
propriety of appointing some man who can be relied upon as
agent, in place of J. H. Leavenworth. He in my opinion, is
directly responsible for many of the outrages committed by
Indians. The Kiowas and Comanches have been more exten-
sively engaged in capturing and selling women and children,
than any other Indians on the plains, and yet he is no doubt
ready to prove, with affidavits, which cost him probably $0.25
each, that they have committed no depredations, but that the
Cheyennes and others have done the work.
The Cheyennes have committed many depredations, but
I do not believe that they were on the Arkansas, robbing
trains and scalping people from Fort Zarah to Fort Lyon;
on the Smoky Hill, murdering railroad men, attacking stage
stations, obstructing the railroad, firing into the cars, cap-
turing Government trains, etc., from Fort Harker to Fort
Wallace; and on the Saline, Solomon, and Republican, com-
mitting depredations all along these lines at one and the
same time. If so, the Cheyennes are a powerful tribe.
Respectfully submitted,
SAM'L J. CRAWFORD, Governor.
The Indians were there in force ; bucks, squaws, and
papooses, five thousand or more, besides their ponies,
dogs, and stolen horses and mules.
The Commissioners on the part of the Kiowas
were:
COUNCIL AT MEDICINE LODGE 273
Satanka, or Sitting Bear.
Wah-toh-konk, or Black Eagle.
Fish-e-more, or Stinking Saddle.
Sa-tim-gear, or Stumbling Bear.
Cor-beau, or The Crow.
Sa-tan-ta, or White Bear.
Ton-a-en-ko, or Kicking Eagle.
Ma-ye-tin, or Woman's Heart.
Sa-pa-ga, or One Bear.
Sa-to-more, or Bear Lying Down.
On the part of the Comanches :
Parry-wah-say-men, or Ten Bears.
To-she-wi-, or Silver Brooch.
Ho-we-ar, or Gap in the Woods.
Es-a-man-a-ca, or Wolf's Name.
Pooh-hah-to-yeh-be, or Iron Mountain.
Tep-pe-navon, or Painted Lips.
Cear-chi-neka, or Standing Feather.
Tir-ha-yah-gua-hip, or Horse's Back.
At-te-es-ta, or Little Horn.
Sad-dy-yo, or Dog Fat.
On the part of the Apaches:
Mah-vip-pah, or Wolf's Sleeve.
Cho-se-ta, or Bad Back.
Ba-zhe-ech, or Iron Shirt.
Kon-zhon-ta-co, or Poor Bear.
Nah-tan, or Brave Man.
Til-la-ka, or White Horn.
On the part of the Cheyennes :
0-to-ah-nac-co, or Bull Bear.
Nac-co-hah-ket, or Little Bear.
Is-se-von-ne-ve, or Buffalo Chief.
O-ni-hah-ket, or Little Rock.
Moke-tav-a-to, or Black Kettle.
Mo-a-vo-va-ast, or Spotted Elk.
Vip-po-nah, or Slim Face.
Wo-pah-ah, or Gray Head.
Ma-mo-ki, or Curly Hair.
O-to-aJi-lias-tis, or Tall BuU.
274 KANSAS IN THE SIXTIES
Hah-ket-home-mah, or Little Eobe.
Mo-han-histe-histow, or Heap of Birds.
Wo-po-ham, or White Horse.
Min-nin-ne-wah, or Whirlwind.
On the part of the Arapahoes :
Little Raven.
Storm.
Spotted Wolf.
Young Colt.
Yellow Bear.
White Rabbit.
Little Big Mouth.
Tall Bear.
These were the Ministers Plenipotentiary on behalf
of these wild tribes.
The U. S. Commissioners and their friends arrived
and established camp on the north bank of the Medicine
Lodge Creek, October 2, 1867. The train of supplies
taken by Sherman's order in the Summer and held at
Lamed, was brought down to the Council grounds and
the boxes of goods, etc., piled up on top of each other
in full view, that the Indians might come in and take
notice. No boxes were set apart or piled up for the
white women and children, whose husbands and fathers
had been killed and scalped by the fiendish devils who
were waiting for the goods in these boxes.
The bands that had been on the war-path were the
last to arrive. Their guilty consciences made them cau-
tious, lest they might run into a trap. But being as-
sured of safety, they finally came up and pitched their
tepees some three miles from our camp.
The next day the Peace Commissioners, represent-
ing the Great White Chief at Washington, and the Am-
bassadors, representing the " Noble Bed Men of the
Plains," assembled in a large tent and, after shaking
hands all round and smoking the pipe of peace, opened
the Powwow with a brief dissertation from the Hon.
COUNCIL AT MEDICINE LODGE 275
N. G. Taylor, Commissioner of Indian Affairs, as to the
object and purpose of the Council.
INDIAN DIPLOMACY
What Commissioner Taylor said was received in
silence, and at the conclusion approved by a sponta-
neous grunt from the nomads. For a while silence
reigned supreme, when Bull Bear, the leading war-
chief of the Cheyennes, rose to his full height of six
feet, with the dignity of a Eoman Senator, and drawing
his blanket around him carefully to hide his concealed
weapons, delivered a harangue; which, when inter-
preted, showed that the Indians were on the war-path
to prevent Kansas and Colorado from being settled by
the pale-faces.
He said the Indians claimed that part of the coun-
try as their own, and did not want railroads built
through it to scare away the buffalo. He said, in his
peculiar way, a good many things that reflected seri-
ously on the Indian Policy of the Government and its
injustice to the Indians. A great deal of what he said
was rambling, irrelevant, and of no consequence. But
he did the best he could to justify his people in what
they had done. Throughout his talk, there was con-
siderable Indian cunning displayed and much sup-
pressed Indian viciousness.
They had been told by Commissioner Taylor, in his
previous talk, that the " Great Father " wanted the
Cheyennes and Arapahoes to surrender their claims to
lands and the right to hunt in Kansas and Colorado,
and remove south to a reservation in the Indian Terri-
tory, where game was more abundant; but Bull Bear
thought they owned all the country east of the Rocky
Mountains and between the Washita and Platte Rivers.
When told that they had previously sold and been
paid for most of their lands east of the Rocky Moun-
tains, he squirmed and said, " Yes, but we are now
ready to make another treaty." To this the other In-
276 KANSAS IN THE SIXTIES
dians assented with an impressive grunt. Then Little
Raven, principal chief of the Arapahoes; Ten Bears,
war chief of the Comanches ; Kicking Eagle, of the Ki-
owas ; and Wolf 's Sleeve, of the Apaches, followed Bull
Bear in the order mentioned, and repeated, in sub-
stance, what he had said.
Little Eaven and Kicking Eagle were less vehement
and more diplomatic than the others. They wanted to
make peace and be sure of their winter supplies. Be-
sides, they were both good Indians and opposed to war.
The Cheyennes were the worst of all, and led in all
those Indian wars, followed by the young men of the
other tribes. Satanka and Satanta, two leading Kiowa
chiefs, warlike and always bloodthirsty, sat quiet
throughout the morning session nd paid strict atten-
tion to what was said.
After all who wished to talk had expressed their
views, the Council adjourned, to meet the next morn-
ing. At the appointed time, the same chiefs, with a
number of new arrivals, were there, and substantially
the same ground was travelled over as on the previous
day.
This farce was repeated from day to day for per-
haps a week, when all of a sudden, Satanta, of the Ki-
owas, arose in his place and made a most vicious talk,
boasting of what he had done, and walked out, followed
by the other chiefs. His action, to the Army Officers
present, was significant and foreboded evil. But the
Council proceeded as usual, and at the proper time ad-
journed until the next morning.
When Santanta left the Council with a wicked ex-
pression all over his face, Colonel John K. Rankin and
I, also, walked out and over to the camp of our infantry
and artillery and suggested to the officers in command,
the propriety of ordering their men to camp and hold-
ing themselves in readiness for any emergency that
might arise.
The next morning Satanta and some other chiefs
COUNCIL AT MEDICINE LODGE 277
did not attend the Council, nor were any of the Indian
women or children to be seen about the Council
grounds. Besides, bands of mounted Indians could be
soon in the distance scouting around, as they had often
been seen when on the war-path. A number of the
chiefs, however, were at the Council the next day as
usual.
All that day and a part of the next, there was con-
siderable uneasiness among the Army Officers, who
knew the treachery of an Indian. General Terry, the
most skilful Indian-fighter on the ground, was quite un-
easy because we had less than five hundred soldiers
there, while the Indians, all told, had not less than three
thousand warriors within three miles of our camp.
Satanta, Tall Bull, and others contemplated an at-
tack, and, if possible, a massacre of the Peace Commis-
sioners and all present. But seeing the troops kept
close in camp, and the artillery trained in their direc-
tion, their courage failed them.
Tall Bull was the last to leave the bloody trail and
come down to the Council. After reaching the Indian
camp, he formed a part of his band — about two hun-
dred mounted warriors — and came over to our camp
in line of battle just as the sun was setting. He crossed
Medicine Creek and halted a short distance from our
tents. The Peace Commissioners and their guests
walked out to meet him.
As he sat on his horse in front of his line of mounted
warriors, General Harney, an old Indian-fighter, ad-
vanced and extended his hand. Tall Bull reached out
his hand with one finger extended, which was promptly
brushed aside by the General who took no further no-
tice of him. It was thought by some of those present
that that was why the renegades subsequently left the
Council as they did. However, in the course of a day
or so, they returned and negotiations proceeded as
though nothing had interfered.
278 KANSAS IN THE SIXTIES
TREATIES
On the twenty-first a treaty was concluded with the
Kiowas, Comanches, and Apaches, and witnessed by a
number of gentlemen, including Henry M. Stanley,
afterwards the African explorer and Member of Parlia-
ment. On the twenty-eighth the Cheyenne and Arapa-
hoe treaty was signed, and a vast amount of supplies
delivered to the unruly wards.
By these treaties the Kiowas, Comanches, and
Apaches received a large reservation north of Red
Eiver, on lands that formerly belonged to the Choctaws
and Chickasaws; and the Cheyennes and Arapahoes
received a reservation of about three million acres on
the Cherokee outlet, in what is now the State of Okla-
homa, in exchange for all the lands owned or claimed
by them in Kansas and Colorado.
Having accomplished their purpose by waging a re-
lentless warfare in Kansas during the summer, they
were now ready to return to their winter haunts on Eed
River and indulge in sports and war-dancing around
the scalps of their victims, until the weather was pro-
pitious for another raid in Kansas. The Peace Com-
mission had granted them amnesty for past offences
and given them food, clothing, arms, ammunition, and
other supplies sufficient for the winter, and that made
them docile for the time being.
Thus the great Council of 1867 wound up its affairs,
and the Commissioners on the part of the United
States and their guests, assistants, and escort, folded
their tents and returned to their wigwams to await
developments.
When the troops in the field were called off the trail
and the Indians invited to the Peace Council at Medi-
cine Lodge, General Hancock returned to Fort Leaven-
worth, and soon thereafter was ordered to relieve
General Sheridan at New Orleans. When informed of
his going, I addressed a letter to him, of which the fol-
lowing is a copy :
COUNCIL AT MEDICINE LODGE 279
EXECUTIVE DEPARTMENT.
TOPEKA, KAN., Sept. 10, 1867.
MAJ. GEN. "W. S. HANCOCK,
Commanding Dept. of Mo.,
Fort Leavenworth, Kansas.
GENERAL :
I learn with regret that you are about leaving this
Department for duty elsewhere.
Before you go, I beg leave to say in behalf of the people
of this State, that your untiring efforts in the faithful dis-
charge of your official duties while here, are fully appre-
ciated, and that you carry with you wherever you may be
called, the heartfelt thanks of a grateful people, who through
your exertions, in part, have been spared from the ravages
and atrocities of a blood-thirsty foe.
We are fully aware of the difficulties and embarrass-
ments, with which you have had to contend, and fully accord
to you the commendation of having most faithfully dis-
charged your every duty.
During the past year many of our people have fallen
victims to the savage barbarity of hostile Indians; yet the
blood of none of these rests upon you.
Accept this as a slight token of appreciation of your val-
uable and efficient services while on duty in this Department.
May God grant you health and courage to continue in
the discharge of your duty as faithfully as you have done
in Kansas.
Sincerely yours,
S. J. CRAWFORD, Governor.
In reply, the following was received:
ST. Louis, Mo., October 16, 1867.
His Exc. S. J. CRAWFORD,
Governor of Kansas,
Topeka, Kansas.
MY DEAR SIR:
Your letter of September 10th, written on the occasion
of my being relieved in command of the Department of the
Missouri, and commending my services while in the exercise
of that command, has been received and affords me much
gratification.
280 KANSAS IN THE SIXTIES
I regret very much being sent to another field of duty,
and especially before the Indian question has been finally
disposed of.
I believe it is only necessary for any person, not inter-
ested in trade with the Indians, to travel through the State
of Kansas from East to West, to fully understand the Indian
question. That all such persons must come to a like conclu-
sion can scarcely be doubted.
That the question will in time be settled in a sensible
way is certain; although contrary interests may retard the
final settlement.
A judicious course now may prevent the final extermina-
tion of the Indians, but before anything tending to a per-
manent arrangement with them can be accomplished, I
believe it will be necessary to make them feel the power of
the Government.
With much respect, I remain
Your obedient servant,
WINFIELD S. HANCOCK,
Major Gen. U. S. A.
General Hancock was a true soldier and, had he
been allowed to finish his campaign in 1867, we would
have been spared the horrible outrages and atrocities
perpetrated by these same Indians in 1868.
BAD OSAGES
While the wild tribes were operating on the plains,
a band of ex-rebel Osages was prowling about the
southern border of the State, stealing horses and other
stock from the settlers. During the Summer I visited
the Osage nation with an escort, and calling the chiefs
together, informed them of what their renegades had
been doing, and demanded either the thieves or the
stolen property. The property was promptly returned.
Sixteen horses were taken back to their owners at one
time, as I was informed ; and ten at another, as the fol-
lowing letter shows :
COUNCIL AT MEDICINE LODGE 281
FORT SCOTT, Sept. 27, 1867.
To the HON. S. J. CRAWFORD,
Governor of the State of Kansas.
A number of our citizens request me to return their
thanks for your efforts in their behalf in procuring ten head
of horses taken from them by the Osage Indians, as th"ey
believe that it was entirely through your efforts that they
recovered their lost property. And one man especially,
James Connor, a blind man, requests me that I should return
his thanks for the recovery of his horses for he says his whole
dependence was upon them. And, believe me, that the
expressions of gratitude I heard them make will prove sin-
cere should you ever want any assistance from their hands or
the hands of their friends.
The names of James Connor, Mr. Smith, Mr. Gray, and
Mr. Perkins are mentioned as persons benefited by your
efforts, and they all join in returning you their thanks.
Very respectfully yours,
J. S. EMMERT.
This ended our troubles with the Osages, and there-
after they were as good as most of the civilized tribes.
Early in November, 1867, 1 returned from the Med-
icine Lodge Council and devoted my time to the affairs
of State which had necessarily been neglected.
On the fifteenth of November, the Eighteenth Kan-
sas Cavalry was called home and mustered out of serv-
ice. The Regular troops engaged in the Indian war of
that summer were ordered into winter quarters at
Forts Harker and Hayes.
Later in November I visited and inspected the State
institutions and public buildings at Topeka, Manhattan,
Emporia, Osawatomie, Olathe, Wyandotte, Lawrence,
and Leavenworth.
Notwithstanding the ravages incident to our Indian
war and the trials and tribulations of our frontier set-
tlers, immigration continued to pour into eastern Kan-
sas, and evidence of prosperity was visible in all
directions. New fields, new orchards, new houses, new
282 KANSAS IN THE SIXTIES
towns, and new faces, were here reflecting the light and
influence of a progressive civilization.
THANKSGIVING PKOCLAMATION
In keeping with the new order of things, and thank-
ful for even a temporary cessation of hostilities on the
border, I issued a Proclamation as follows :
STATE OF KANSAS,
Executive Department.
God, in his mercy, has preserved our people through
another year. Though in the infancy of her existence, Kan-
sas is enabled to rejoice in the fulness of prosperity.
The year has been one of general healthf ulness ; our
people have enjoyed the privileges of Free Schools, and
experienced the ennobling influences of a Free Religion.
Abundant harvests have rewarded the labors of the
husbandman, and every department of industry has thrived.
Our railroad enterprises have been prosecuted with vigor;
that great national thoroughfare which is destined to con-
nect us with the mineral States of the Pacific Coast and place
within our reach the wealth of Asiatic commerce, is now
far on its way toward the western limit of the State.
In view of these and manifold other blessings and mer-
cies, and in accordance with a time-honored custom, I do
hereby designate
THURSDAY, NOVEMBER 28, 1867,
as a day of thanksgiving and prayer to Almighty God.
Abstaining on that day from all their secular pursuits, I
do earnestly invite the people of this State to assemble in
their customary places of public worship, to return thanks to
our Heavenly Father for the gracious manifestations of His
favor in the past, and to implore His guidance, protection,
and blessings of the future.
Renewing our solemn vows of fidelity to the nation, and
of devotion to the moral, material, and political welfare of
the State, let us reverently importune the Father of all good
for the continuance of His fostering care.
In testimony whereof I have hereunto set my hand and
COUNCIL AT MEDICINE LODGE 283
caused the great seal of the State to be affixed, at Topeka,
this 4th day of November, 1867.
By the Governor, S. J. CRAWFORD.
R. A. Barker, Secretary of State.
Having complied with this Proclamation and par-
taken of a bountiful Thanksgiving dinner, where the
table was laden with Kansas products and surrounded
by charming Kansas ladies — and men not so charming
-I set about to prepare for the coming of the new
year and new Legislature.
CHAPTER XX
THE LEGISLATURE OF 1868
THE new year opened bright and propitious. Peace
reigned on the borders and throughout the State.
Work on the several railroads was progressing rapidly.
On the first of January the Kansas Pacific reached the
three hundred and thirty-fifth mile-post in Western
Kansas, and the Leavenworth branch was completed.
The Central Branch was constructed one hundred miles
west from Atchison. Work on other roads was also
fairly under way, and the farmers were ploughing and
preparing for their spring crops.
On the fourteenth the new Legislature convened.*
This Legislature, on assembling, immediately or-
ganized and appointed a Joint Committee to inform the
Governor that the House and Senate were in session
and ready to receive such communications and recom-
mendations as the Executive Department might have
to make.
On the same day, January 14, as required by the
Constitution, I transmitted my fourth Annual Message
to the two Houses, and the memorable session of 1868
began its arduous duties.
At the beginning of this session the Commission,
consisting of S. A. Riggs, J. M. Price, and James Mc-
Cahon, previously appointed to codify the laws of
Kansas, made its report to the Legislature. This re-
port, after being carefully considered by the Legisla-
ture, was adopted substantially as reported by the
*See Appendix for the names of the members and officers.
284
LEGISLATURE OF 1868 285
Commission and became the laws of the State of
Kansas.
The work of this Commission, and the wisdom dis-
played by the Legislature in its approval of the same,
deserve all the enconiums that have been bestowed
upon them. The laws brought forth by that Commis-
sion, and reviewed and adopted by the Legislature,
were universally approved and commended by the
courts, lawyers, and people of Kansas at that time.
That they have stood like a granite wall and resisted
the assaults of Legislatures, good, bad, and indifferent,
for thirty-eight years, is clearly shown by the Hon.
John S. Dawson, our present Attorney General, in an
address delivered before the Kansas State Historical
Society, December 4, 1906.*
That Mr. Dawson is right in what he says of the
Legislature of 1868 and its imperishable work, no one
familiar with the facts will for a moment dispute. But
it should not be forgotten that the Legislature of 1867
preceded the Legislature of 1868. It was that Legisla-
ture, working in harmony with the State authorities,
that originated the idea and enacted the legislation
leading to the codification of the laws by a commission.
The Legislature of 1867 was composed of intelli-
gent, conscientious men, who, generally speaking, were
devoted to Kansas and its best interests. Two of the
Senators in that body, Samuel A. Riggs and John M.
Price, were members of the commission that codified
the laws.
The Legislatures of 1865 and 1866 were also com-
posed of first-class men, but both of these were neces-
sarily opening the road through a wilderness of
political rubbish that had been strewn in the pathway of
the State during the dark days of the war. Neverthe-
less we waded through and established a solid macad-
*See Appendix.
286 KANSAS IN THE SIXTIES
amized road out on to the broad plain of a glorious
future.
The laws of 1868 were only a part of the magnifi-
cent structure we established for the State. On the
third of March the Legislature of 1868, having com-
pleted its work and given the State a code of laws that
have stood the test for more than a third of a century,
adjourned sine die.
BAID ON COUNCIL GEOVE MASSACRE IN THE SOLOMON AND
REPUBLICAN VALLEYS DESPATCH TO PRESIDENT JOHN-
SON BATTLE OF THE ARICKAREE.
SOON after the adjournment of the Legislature, the
hostile Indians who had been furnished with sup-
plies (including arms and ammunition) by the U. S.
Indian agents and traders during the previous winter,
again made their appearance in South-Central Kansas.
The Kiowas and Comanches and a part of the
Cheyennes went into camp on Pawnee Creek, in the vi-
cinity of Fort Larned; and the Arapahoes, Apaches,
and the remainder of the Cheyennes camped in the vi-
cinity of Fort Dodge, on the Arkansas River; and all
proceeded to draw rations from the Government until
the buffalo came north in herds sufficient to supply
them with food.
With the coming of grass in the Spring came the
buffalo ; whereupon the Indians grew independent and
restless, and showed signs of hostility. They had re-
ceived arms and ammunition at the Medicine Lodge
Council the previous October, when they came there
fresh from the warpath, and now they demanded more
guns, pistols, and ammunition.
General Sheridan, who had been assigned to the
command of the Department, reached Fort Larned
early in March, and thence proceeded to Fort Dodge,
where he could be in touch with all the Indians in that
vicinity. The chiefs, head-men, and warriors talked,
smoked, and powwowed with Sheridan almost every
287
288 KANSAS IN THE SIXTIES
day for a month. They declared that the Peace Com-
mission at Medicine Lodge had promised to issue more
guns, pistols, and ammunition to them at Fort Larned
in the Spring, and that they had come up to get them.
Sheridan, and General Sully, who was there on
duty, seeing the discontent among the Indians and fear-
ing an outbreak, were opposed to giving them the arms
and ammunition they were demanding. The Indians
and their agents were persistent. One band of Chey-
ennes made a raid on the Kaws (a civilized tribe near
Council Grove), as a beginning of hostilities in the
spring, but it so happened that the Kaws were armed
and prepared to receive them.
BAID ON COUNCIL GROVE
Their agent, Major E. S. Stover (late of the Sec-
ond Kansas Cavalry), an officer of skill and unflinching
courage, was there, and lost no time in forming his line
for action. When Major Stover was told that the
Cheyennes were coming, he immediately ordered every
man to the front with his gun, and the squaws and
papooses into the storehouses near the Agency build-
ing for protection.
Near the Agency was a dense forest of timber,
through which the Cheyennes had to make their way.
Stover stationed his warriors behind trees at the outer
edge of the forest and when the Cheyennes advanced
witihn range, they received a volley that sent a num-
ber of them to the happy hunting-grounds. The Chey-
ennes numbered about four hundred warriors, while
the Kaws had less than two hundred with arms. The
battle raged in the timber and a part of the time on the
open field with great fury, from early in the morning
until late in the afternoon, when the Cheyennes hauled
off and beat a hasty retreat, robbing the settlers as
they went.
When the battle began in the morning, Major
Stover started a messenger to me at Topeka, sixty
HOSTILE INDIANS 289
miles distant, with a note, saying that the Kaws had
been attacked by the Cheyennes, and a battle royal was
raging; but he would " hold the fort " until I arrived
with reinforcements. The messenger (Jo Jim) ar-
rived in Topeka about 7 P. M. and related his blood-
curdling and hair-raising story.
The only available troops I had within easy reach,
were Thaddeus H. Walker, Geo. H. Hoyt, and Colonel
J. W. Forsyth, of Sheridan's staff. On reading
Stover's note, I announced to these gentlemen that I
was going to the front, whereupon they each tendered
their services and said they would also go. In a few
minutes we were off to the war behind two dashing
teams that made the run of sixty miles by the light of
a full moon, and reached the field just as the sun was
making its appearance over the eastern hills.
When we arrived the battle was over and the Chey-
ennes were under full retreat westward on the old
Santa Fe trail. After viewing the battlefield and re-
viewing the victorious Kaws, we were escorted over
to the beautiful little city of Council Grove by Major
Stover, where we found the good people slowly recov-
ering from the excitement of the Cheyenne raid.
While this band of Cheyennes, under the leadership
of Tall Bull, was raiding the Kaws and robbing the
settlers west of Council Grove, another band of the
same tribe was in the vicinity of Fort Wallace, com-
mitting depredations along the Kansas Pacific Bail-
road and stage routes to Denver.
Meantime the Kiowas, Comanches, Arapahoes,
and the remaining bands of the Cheyennes were linger-
ing back at Lamed and Dodge, demanding guns, pis-
tols, and ammunition as a condition precedent to their
remaining at peace. The only reason they did not go
out on the war-path when Tall Bull started on his ex-
pedition against the Kaws, was that they could not go
until they received arms and ammunition from the
Government or from their traders. Hence they lin-
290 KANSAS IN THE SIXTIES
gered back at Lamed and Dodge and demanded war
supplies.
Had it not been for the Council Grove raid, the
guns, pistols, and fixed ammunition, which had been
sent to Larned for them, would have been distributed
in May, as the Indian office at Washington and the
Agents with the Indians were demanding. That, and
other outrages, which were being committed daily by
roving bands, convinced Sheridan and General Sully,
who were on the ground, that they meant war. And
yet in the face of what was going on all around them,
these Generals yielded against their own better judg-
ment and allowed the guns, pistols, and ammunition
to be issued to treacherous assassins.
MASSACKE IN THE SOLOMON AND EEPUBLICAN VALLEYS
The issue of not only arms and ammunition, but
food, clothing, and other supplies was made on the
third of August, 1868. Within three days they broke
up their camps in the vicinity of Fort Larned, where
the war supplies were distributed, and started north on
their work of death, desolation, rapine, and robbery.
They first struck the Kansas Pacific Eoad and the set-
tlements along the Smoky Hill and Saline Rivers, and
after laying them in waste and leaving a trail of blood
and ruin behind, they appeared in the Solomon and Re-
publican valleys.
There their fiendish atrocities were beyond descrip-
tion. Having been informed of the issuance of supplies
and munitions of war to the hostile tribes at Larned, I
returned from the frontier to Topeka to prepare for
the worst. Scarcely had I reached home when I re-
ceived the following despatch:
SALINA, KANSAS, August 14, 1868.
Gov. S. J. CRAWFORD,
Topeka, Kansas:
A messenger just in from the Solomon Valley reports a
large number of Indians in Mitchell, Ottawa, and Republic
HOSTILE INDIANS 291
counties, murdering indiscriminately. They attacked the
upper settlements day before yesterday, and swept down the
valleys for a distance of thirty miles, butchering men, women,,
and children as they advanced. The main body has gone
north to the Republican Valley. What few settlers escaped
in Mitchell County are in a stone corral on Asher Creek.
Forty persons reported killed.
R. D. MOBLEY.
In response to this and other similar despatches, I
went in person, by special train, to Salina, and there
hastily organized a volunteer company and moved
rapidly to the relief of the settlers, but arrived too late
to save the lives of over forty persons who had been
killed or wounded and scalped by the Indians. After
having the wounded provided for and the dead buried,
I returned to Topeka and sent the following despatch
to the President :
DESPATCH TO PRESIDENT JOHNSON
TOPEKA, KANSAS, August 17, 1868.
To His EXCELLENCY ANDREW JOHNSON, PRESIDENT:
I have just returned from Northwestern Kansas, the
scene of a terrible Indian massacre. On the thirteenth and
fourteenth instant, forty of our citizens were killed and
wounded by hostile Indians. Men, women and children were
murdered indiscriminately. Many of them were scalped, and
their bodies mutilated. "Women, after receiving mortal
wounds, were outraged and otherwise inhumanly treated in
the presence of their dying husbands and children. Two
young ladies and two little girls were carried away by the
red-handed assassins, to suffer a fate worse than death.
Houses were robbed and burned, and a large quantity of
stock driven off. The settlements, covering a space sixty
miles wide, and reaching from the Saline to the Republican,
were driven in, the country laid in ashes and the soil
drenched in blood. How long must we submit to such atroci-
ties? Need we look to the Government for protection, or
must the people of Kansas protect themselves? If the Gov-
ernment cannot control these uncivilized barbarians, while
they are under its fostering care and protection, it certainly
292 KANSAS IN THE SIXTIES
can put a stop to the unbearable policy of supplying them
with arms and ammunition, especially while they are waging
war notoriously against the frontier settlements, from the
borders of Texas to the plains of Dakota. The savage devils
have become intolerable, and must and shall be driven out of
this State. Gen. Sheridan is doing, and has done, all in his
power, to protect our people, but he is powerless for want of
troops. If volunteers are needed, I will, if desired, furnish
the Government all that may be necessary to insure a per-
manent and lasting peace.
S. J. CRAWFORD, Governor of Kansas.
This message was referred to General W. T. Sher-
man, commanding the Military Division of the Mis-
souri, who immediately set in motion all his available
troops and did everything in his power to have the hos-
tile Indians overtaken and punished ; General Sheridan,
who had returned to Fort Harker, was also doing what
he could, but the troops at their command were in-
adequate for the work before them.
A wide area of country stretching from the Arkan-
sas River to the Republican and westward to Colorado
was swarming with roving bands, here to-day and else-
where to-morrow, committing murder and other hor-
rible crimes with perfect impunity.
After the massacre on the Solomon and Republican
Rivers, I received despatches from General Sheridan
as follows :
HEADQUARTERS, FORT HARKER, August 21, 1868.
Gov. CRAWFORD:
The Indians committing depredations on the Solomon
and Saline were a party of about two hundred Cheyennes,
twenty Sioux, and four Arapahoes. Since that time two of
my scouts have been killed and one wounded, and to-day
they have attacked the wood parties at Fort Wallace. I will
at once order the Cheyennes, Arapahoes and Kiowas out of
your State and into their reservations, and will compel them
to go by force. We will not cease our efforts until the per-
petrators of the Solomon massacre are delivered up for pun-
HOSTILE INDIANS 293
ishment. It may take until the cold weather to catch them
but we will not cease till it is accomplished.
P. H. SHERIDAN, Major General.
HEADQUARTERS, FORT HARKER, August 21, 1868.
Gov. CRAWFORD:
In order to rest in confidence and protect the line of set-
tlements north from this point to the Republican, General
Sully will erect small block-houses on the Saline and Solomon
and Republican, and garrison them with a small infantry
force, and keep a sufficient force of cavalry scouting between
these different points.
P. H. SHERIDAN,
Major General, U. S. A.
From the bloody fields of the Solomon and Repub-
lican, the Indians retreated westward with their
plunder and captives until they were reinforced by
other war parties on the Republican, and tributary
streams north of Fort Wallace. These several bands,
when united, numbered about one thousand warriors;
well mounted, armed, and equipped for savage war-
fare. Simultaneously with these raids in Central and
Northern Kansas, other tribes were raiding the con-
struction parties on the Kansas Pacific Railroad and
the overland routes of travel and transportation in
Western Kansas.
BATTLE OF THE ARICKABEE
On the tenth of September, Colonel George A. For-
sythe, of General Sheridan's staff, with Lieutenant
Beecher, Dr. Moore, and forty-seven scouts of daunt-
less courage and unerring aim, left Fort Wallace in
pursuit of a band of Cheyennes which had been com-
mitting depredations in that vicinity. The trail led
north toward the Republican River, and as Forsythe
advanced, it gradually became more and more distinct,
showing that the retreating Indians were being rein-
forced from day to day.
On the night of September 16 Colonel Forsythe,
294 KANSAS IN THE SIXTIES
with his scouts, encamped on Arickaree Creek, near the
northwest corner of the State of Kansas. He had been
following the trail for six days; and occasionally a
solitary Indian had been seen, but there was nothing
unusual to indicate the immediate presence of the In-
dians in large numbers. Evidently those he was pur-
suing had formed a junction with the main force on
the Eepublican and were waiting for Forsythe and his
scouts.
At the break of day on the morning of September
17, a small party made a dash through Forsythe 's
camp and captured some of his horses. A few minutes
later about eight hundred warriors made their ap-
pearance, yelling like demons, and opened the fight in
earnest. Although Forsythe had been on their trail
for six days and knew they were being reinforced as
they retreated, he did not know they were so near.
When attached he moved, under fire, across the
creek to a small island, with all his men and such of
his horses as had not already been captured; but he
left back his pack animals, provisions, and camp equip-
age, which were soon in the hands of the enemy. The
island was of sand formation, which enabled the men to
burrow and to some extent protect themselves. A
range of low hills, however, enabled the Indians to ap-
proach within easy range and fire down at Forsythe 's
men. It was an ordeal that trial men's souls. Fifty
white men surrounded by eight hundred red devils in
war-paint and yelling like demons.
Colonel Forsythe was the first man wounded. "When
hit, he said nothing, but continued to direct the fire of
his men. Next came two of the veteran scouts; then
the gallant young Beecher and Dr. Moore were mor-
tally wounded. Others in their turn, throughout the
day, took their medicine but no one of the heroic band
faltered so long as he was able to load and level his
gun. While Forsythe and his men were suffering and
slowly melting away, the redskins were being piled up
HOSTILE INDIANS 295
on top of each other in their front. Thus the first day
of the battle wore away with about one-half of For-
sythe's men either dead or wounded, and all their
horses the same.
When the mantle of night was spread over that
bloody field, the war-whoop died away and everything
was still, save the groans of the wounded and the howl-
ing of the wolves. During the night the Indians kept
a strong guard around the little band of scouts to pre-
vent them from escaping or sending messengers for
relief. Nevertheless two of the scouts — Jack Stillwell
and Pete Trudell — volunteered to take the risk and go
for relief. It was eighty-five miles by a direct line to
Fort Wallace, but to avoid Indians the messengers
would have to travel a much greater distance.
At twelve o'clock on the night of the seventeenth,
these two brave boys started on their perilous journey,
and after many hairbreadth escapes reached the main
road, fifteen miles west of Wallace, on the twentieth.
There they met two colored soldiers with a despatch
for Colonel Carpenter, who was then scouting with a
detachment of the Tenth Cavalry, some seventy miles
southwest of the Arickaree battle-ground. Stillwell and
Trudell informed the messengers to Carpenter of the
battle and location of Colonel Forsythe, and proceeded
to Wallace and delivered their despatches to Colonel
Bankhead, who immediately collected his available
troops and started for the scene of action.
Meantime, however, the messengers to Carpenter
on leaving Stillwell and Trudell in the morning, put
spurs to their horses and lost no time in reaching Car-
penter. That gallant officer, on being informed of
Forsythe 's peril and distress, wheeled about and
moved rapidly to his relief. On the night of the twen-
tieth Colonel Forsythe, not having heard from his first
messengers, started two more of the scouts — Jack
Donavan and A. J. Pliley — to Fort Wallace. These
steady, reliable young men started at once ; on the sec-
296 KANSAS IN THE SIXTIES
ond day out they met Colonel Carpenter moving rap-
idly to the relief of Forsythe. His arrival on the
bloody ground brought cheers and tears from the liv-
ing, and prayers for the dead.
In this battle the Cheyennes, Arapahoes, Kiowas,
and Comanches, paid dearly for the guns, pistols, and
ammunition they secured from the Government under
false pretences at Fort Larned on the third of August.
"While Forsythe, Carpenter, and Bankhead were
thus operating in Northwestern Kansas, General Sully
was moving against other bands in Southwestern Kan-
sas and the Indian Territory, as will be observed from
the following:
FORT HAYS, KANSAS, September 10, 1868.
GOVERNOR CRAWFORD:
On the 7th instant, General Sully crossed the Arkansas
with nine companies of cavalry, after the Cheyennes and
Arapahoes. My object has been to make war on the families
and stock of these Indians, and to break them up completely
and effectually. This is the only policy to pursue. I will
put every available man I have on this duty. To attempt to
follow the small raiding parties who have committed depre-
dations at isolated points on the plains would bring no satis-
factory results. . . . All the stock and families of the Chey-
ennes and Arapahoes are south of the Arkansas River, and
General Sully 's movement will bring back all the raiding par-
ties of those bands operating north of the river, for the pro-
tection of their own families.
Colonels Forsythe and Bankhead moved this morning
against Pawnee Killer, and the bands connected with him,
who are located on the head-waters of the Republican, and
are operating in Colorado. . . .
I desire to state to you, that as soon as I can conscien-
tiously believe that the means at my command are insuffi-
cient to accomplish the results above stated, I will notify the
proper military authorities, and yourself, so that there may
be a good reason for the expense which may occur in calling
out troops.
P. H. SHERIDAN, Maj. Gen. U. S. A.
HOSTILE INDIANS 297
Following this despatch came letters and petitions
telling of raids all along the border, and begging for
protection; whereupon I telegraphed Sheridan as
follows :
TOPEKA, KANSAS, September 11, 1868.
GEN. P. H. SHERIDAN,
Fort Hays :
Will you issue to me, for the State, five hundred stand of
Spencer carbines, with accoutrements and ammunition? If
so, I will at once organize a battalion of picked men, well
mounted, to guard the border from the Republican to the
Arkansas.
S. J. CRAWFORD, Governor.
FORT HAYS, September 11, 1868.
Gov. CRAWFORD:
I will give you the carbines and accoutrements for the
purpose you indicate. Your proposition will give me seven
good companies now on duty on the frontier.
P. H. SHERIDAN,
Major General, U. S. A.
FORT HAYS, KANSAS, September 13, 1868.
Gov. CRAWFORD:
I will let y'*u have five hundred Spencer carbines and
accoutrements. Am authorized to give you rations for same
number of men for two months. Should this period be too
short to accomplish the work, perhaps we can get it
extended. Where will you have the carbines? Send some
one up on Monday's train to arrange with me the points of
delivery of the rations. I will require your officers' receipts
for the carbines.
P. H. SHERIDAN,
Major General, U. S. A.
On receipt of this despatch I issued a Proclamation
calling for troops,* in response to which five companies
of State Militia, well mounted, armed, and equipped,
were speedily organized, and stationed at suitable
*See Appendix.
KANSAS IN THE SIXTIES
points to guard the frontier settlements from the Ark-
ansas River to the Republican.*
After these troops were placed on duty, no further
depredations were committed on the border, except
on one occasion, when a small party slipped through
the lines and killed four settlers. But while they were
thus engaged, Captain Potts, with his company of
State troops, struck them broadside and left but few to
tell the tale. He pursued the survivors for many miles
and recaptured all the stolen horses and other property
they had taken from the settlers.
While Potts was handling this band without gloves,
Captain Baker and his company were in hot pursuit of
a part of the same band in the Saline Valley, who were
fleeing for their lives. This ended the campaign and
settled permanently the Indian troubles in that part of
the State.
The battalion, having completed its work, was called
in and mustered out of service. While in the service,
these companies were ever on the alert and ready for
action. They were never taken by surprise, and for
that reason their losses in killed and wounded were
comparatively light. But they did their work effect-
ively, and deserve the thanks of the State and the ever-
lasting gratitude of those whose lives and property
they protected.
* See Appendix for roster of Frontier Battalion.
CHAPTEE XXII
INDIAN LAND FRAUDS
ATTEMPTED STEAL OF THE OSAGE LANDS LETTER AND ME-
MORIAL TO U. S. SENATE DEFEAT OF LAND-GRABBERS
CHEROKEE NEUTRAL LANDS OPPOSED BY STATE OFFI-
CERS FRAUDULENT SALE OF THE SAC AND FOX LANDS.
WHILE these bloody scenes of real tragedy were
being enacted in Central and Western Kansas, a
play in low comedy was being rehearsed behind the
screens in Washington, preparatory to a raid on the
Osage and Cherokee neutral lands in Southern Kansas.
ATTEMPTED STEAL OF THE OSAGE LANDS
By treaty of the second of June, 1825, the United
States ceded and set apart to the Osage tribe of In-
dians, a reservation embracing eight million acres, ex-
tending from the Neosho Eiver westward, with the
width of fifty miles. And by treaty of December 29,
1835, the United States sold and conveyed to the Cher-
okee nation a tract of eight hundred thousand acres,
situated between the Osage lands and the State of Mis-
souri. These two reservations, about nine million
acres, fell within the State of Kansas when its bound-
aries were established. They were of the best quality,
and the eyes of vultures were upon them.
By the treaty of September 29, 1865, the Osages
ceded to the United States a tract, 30 by 50 miles, off
the east end of their reservation, which was soon there-
after opened to settlement under the preemption laws
at one dollar and twenty-five cents per acre. This left
to the Osages about seven million acres, known as the
Osage Trust and Diminished Reserve Lands.
299
800 KANSAS IN THE SIXTIES
These seven million acres are now included in, and
constitute the greater part of sixteen counties in South-
ern Kansas, namely: Wilson, Montgomery, Elk, Chau-
tauqua, Cowley, Butler, Sumner, Sedgwick, Harper,
Kingman, Barbour, Pratt, Comanche, Kiowa, Clarke,
and Ford. This vast body of land was at that time
worth many millions of dollars.
The Osages, tinder the treaty of 1825, had only the
right of occupancy, or what was known as the common
Indian title, while the fee or real title was in the United
States. The purpose of the schemers was first to buy
the Indian title for a song, and then, by the same care-
fully worded treaty, trick the Government out of its
fee-simple title, by having the Senate ratify and con-
firm the treaty. It was an audacious attempt on the
part of the Secretary of the Interior and his confed-
erates to transfer to a railroad company by unheard-
of methods seven million acres of land for a mere
bagatelle in comparison to their real value.
Had these lands been unoccupied public lands of the
United States, the scheme would have been bad enough,
but they were more than public lands. By the Act ad-
mitting Kansas into the Union, every sixteenth and
every thirty-sixth section, embracing in the aggregate
three hundred and eighty-eight thousand acres, had
been granted to the State for school purposes, and
thousands of settlers were then occupying other tracts
of the said seven million acres, who were ready to pay
a dollar and a quarter per acre for the same. But
this previous grant to the State, and the rights of the
settlers, were of no consequence in the eyes of the Sec-
retary of the Interior and the persons for whose benefit
the lands were to be secured.
The Commissioners appointed to consummate the
deal were officials of the Indian Office and subject to
the orders of the Secretary. The Council was con-
vened on the Osage Reservation about May 20, 1868. I
was intending to be present at the Council to look after
INDIAN LAND FRAUDS 301
our school land grant and the interests of the settlers,
but when about ready to start, I was called to the west-
ern frontier in anticipation of a raid by the Cheyennes.
Not being able to attend the Osage Council, I sent Pro-
fessor MacVicar, State Superintendent of Public In-
struction, with directions to inform the Commission of
our school land grant, and also to do what he could to
protect the settlers residing on the Osage Reservation.
The Professor, on arriving at the Council ground,
was promptly waved aside, and no attention was paid
to what he said, nor to the rights of the State and
settlers. Not being recognized by the Commission, he
established an observation bureau and took notice.
He soon grasped the situation to some extent and made
notes of what occurred from day to day. When the
so-called treaty was signed, MacVicar stepped into his
carriage and returned to Topeka, bringing with him
a letter from Colonel Blair, of which the following is a
copy:
FORT SCOTT, KAN., June 3, 1868.
HON. S. J. CRAWFORD,
DEAR Sra:
You know, of course, that the treaty in favor of Sturgis
with the Osages is completed, although I fought it to the bit-
ter end ; but you can scarcely conceive the threats and intimi-
dation that were resorted to in order to accomplish it. Your
name, as Governor, was freely used by them, they saying to
the Indians that unless they signed, you would turn out the
Militia, drive them off their Reservation, or kill them, and
they would never get a cent for their land. They knew I had
offered $400,000 more than Sturgis, and they wanted to sell
to our road, as they knew all our men and had confidence in
them, but the Commissioners would not permit them.
This treaty is as fatal to Lawrence and Leavenworth as
to us, if they only knew it. Sturgis is in with Joy, and they
propose to construct a road from Ottawa to Kansas City,
cross on the bridge, go up Joy's road to the H. & St. Jo. E. R.,
and thence to Chicago, St. Louis freight branching off from
Kansas City by the Missouri Pacific. He can then take the
iron off the Lawrence branch and put it down elsewhere with
302 KANSAS IN THE SIXTIES
but little cost, as there are no depots, buildings, or telegraph
lines to remove. By this means they will get for their
Ottawa road the Kansas City bonds, the Johnson County
subscription, and the 125,000 acres of land which belongs to
our road ; and they can run together till they reach the point
opposite the Osage lands (for the Galveston road don't go
within 15 miles of the land just sold to it), and then Joy
will take the road on south, while Sturgis builds west. They
then expect to connect with the S. W. Branch about the lead
mines, giving an outlet that way to St. Louis, and thus the
whole B. R. System of the State is utterly destroyed and
beyond the possibility of change in the future. Our Sedalia
road will then, of course, go straight south, seeking connec-
tion with the Southwest Branch; and the whole border tier
south of Olathe is left on an island, and can never have a
main road at any time in the future.
The treaty makes no provision for settlers, schools, or
half breeds, but leaves them all at the mercy of Sturgis;
whilst our road offered to provide for all. There is no
restriction on his purchase. It is a terrible injustice to the
hardy pioneers and they all feel it. At Hurnboldt and
through that region, although on the line of the L. L. & G.,
they are as bitter against the treaty as we are.
The lands thus treated for comprise nearly 1/5 of the
whole territory of the State and are the last chance for
endowing railroads. There are enough for three at least, and
they should go to our home roads; the largest slice, if any
difference, to the one that runs their whole length.
The treaty kills the A., T., & S. F. road as effectually
as ours. In short, it cheats the Indians and Government,
robs the pioneers, destroys southern Kansas, and completely
paralyzes the railroad capabilities of the State. Under these
circumstances, we feel that we have a right to call on you, as
the Governor of the State, to protect our interests by the
exercise of the influence of your high office and secure the
defeat of the fraudulent treaty, if possible.
Please write to our Senators and the Senate Committee
on Indian Affairs, unless your official duties will allow you to
go to Washington in person to see to it, which I suggest most
respectfully, your duty to the State requires, if it be at all
possible.
I shall start to-morrow, although I can but ill bear the
INDIAN LAND FRAUDS 303
expense, and if you do not come I shall be happy to hear
from you.
I shall fight the treaty to the last.
Very respectfully, Your obdt, servant,
CHAS. W. BLAIR.
LETTER AND MEMOEIAL TO U. S. SENATE — DEFEAT OF LAND-
GRABBERS
From Professor MacVicar and others, I also learned
of the nefarious methods resorted to by the Commis-
sion and by the railroad magnates present, in their
desperation to secure the assent and signatures of the
Indians to the treaty. It was difficult, at first, to pro-
cure all the facts and provisions of the treaty, but soon
I became satisfied that an attempt was being made to
rob the State of its schools lands, and the settlers of
their homes; and, so believing, I prepared and for-
warded to the parties therein mentioned, a letter and
memorial as follows :
EXECUTIVE OFFICE,
TOPEKA, KAN., June 9, 1868.
HON. B. F. WADE, President of the Senate,
HON. S. C. POMEROY, Chairman Senate Committee on
Public Lands,
HON. GEO. W. JULIAN, Chairman House Committee on
Public Lands,
GENTLEMEN :
I telegraphed you yesterday in relation to the treaty
recently concluded with the Osage Indians, and now write
to furnish you additional facts concerning the same, as well
as to solicit your influence in opposition to the confirmation
of the sale of the Cherokee Neutral Lands in Kansas, made
by the late Secretary of the Interior to Mr. James F. Joy
and Co.
These two reservations, you are doubtless aware, com-
prise nearly nine million acres of land, the greater portion
of which is as fertile and of as great natural value as any to
be found in the Mississippi Valley.
The Cherokee treaty, and the attempted sale of lands
under its provisions, were infamous enough; but the recent
treaty with the Osages and the iniquitous manner in which
304 KANSAS IN THE SIXTIES
the same was concluded, make the other comparatively
respectable — as much so, at least, as one fraud can be said
to become respectable by comparison with a greater.
There are at present residing upon these lands more than
10,000 industrious, enterprising people, many of whom
served in our armies during the late war, and afterwards
emigrated thither for the sole purpose of securing homes
for themselves and their families.
The" manner in which this treaty, which completely
ignores the rights of these people, as well as the substantial
and permanent interests of the State, was brought about is
simply disgraceful to all concerned in it; and if sanctioned
by the Senate, will prove a lasting disgrace to the Govern-
ment. A price largely in excess of the one accepted was
offered for the lands, but the offer was peremptorily, if not
contemptuously, declined. The Indians themselves were
strongly averse to the treaty, but were finally influenced to
assent to it by solicitations and threats. I am reliably
informed that it was represented to them that the Governor
of the State would, unless they disposed of and removed from
their lands, attack them with militia, and either kill or drive
them off.
Of course, the details of the treaty will not be definitely
known until after the Senate shall have acted upon it; but
its principal provisions have been sufficiently ascertained to
show conclusively that the whole affair was a flagrant out-
rage, and that the means resorted to by the Commission, and
by other interested parties, to obtain the assent of the
Indians, were infamous and disgraceful.
Referring you to the enclosed memorial of the State
officers against the ratification of this treaty, and trusting
that you will use your influence to defeat a scheme which is
so full of wrong and outrage to this State and to her people,
I have the honor to be, very respectfully,
Your obdt. servant,
SAMUEL J. CRAWFORD,
Governor of Kansas.
EXECUTIVE OFFICE,
TOPEKA, KAN., June 9, 1S68.
To THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES :
"We, the undersigned Executive Officers of the State of
INDIAN LAND FRAUDS 305
Kansas, most respectfully memorialize your honorable body
against the ratification of the treaty recently concluded with
the Osage Indians, whereby they agree to cede the lands now
held by them in this State to the Leavenworth, Lawrence, and
Galveston Railroad Company, on the following grounds, to
wit:
First. That the Osages were induced to conclude the
treaty by threats and false representations, whereby they
were made to believe that it was the design of the State
authorities to make war upon them and either kill them or
drive them from their Reservation.
Second. That the price agreed to be paid is grossly inad-
equate to the value of the lands; that a much larger price
was offered; that the payments are extended over a long
series of years ; and that the final consummation of the treaty
would be a flagrant robbery of the Indians.
Third. That no provision is made in the treaty for the
benefit of Schools, or in the interest of the settlers who have
gone upon the lands and made improvements; but that both
these interests are remitted to the tender mercies of specula-
tors and monopolists.
Fourth. That the lands thus ceded comprise nearly
one-fifth of the area of the entire State, the whole of which
will be withheld from settlement and development, except
upon such terms as the monopolists may dictate.
Fifth. That the success of this fraud will tend to retard
immigration, thus militating against the best interests of this
State, as well as of the country at large.
Sixth. That the persons who will derive the chief bene-
fits of this treaty .are strangers to the State, and in no wise
identified with its interests.
Seventh. That they believe the whole system of permit-
ting or encouraging the Indians to cede to private corpora-
tions is pernicious; that in extinguishing Indian titles the
Government should become the purchaser, permitting the
settlers to procure titles at the minimum rate, withdrawing
from sale when the aggregate of the purchase money shall
have been realized, and then allowing the preemption and
homestead laws to operate as in other cases.
For these and other reasons which might be enumerated,
the undersigned respectfully request the Senate to negative
306 KANSAS IN THE SIXTIES
the treaty recently concluded with Osages, and which has
been or will be submitted for their consideration.
S. J. CRAWFORD,
Governor.
R. A. BARKER,
Secretary of State.
J. R. SWALLOW,
Auditor of State.
M. ANDERSON,
State Treasurer.
GEORGE H. HOYT,
Attorney General.
P. MACVICAR,
Superintendent
Public Instruction.
In addition to the foregoing I wrote similar letters
to President Johnson, Senator Henderson of Missouri,
Senator Ross of Kansas, and Sidney Clarke of the
House Indian Committee. I also sent the Attorney
General of the State to Washington to oppose the rat-
ification of the treaty, which he did with energy and de-
termination. On the tenth of June I wrote General
Blair as follows :
EXECUTIVE OFFICE,
TOPEKA, KANSAS, June 10, 1868.
GEN. C. W. BLAIR,
Washington, D. C.
MY DEAR SIR:
Your favor of the 3rd is received. I have written and
telegraphed Senators Wade, Pomeroy and Ross, and also Mr.
Julian, Chairman of the Land Committee in the House,
earnestly soliciting their influence against the ratification of
the treaty recently concluded with the Osage Indians.
I trust now with what has been done you will be able to
defeat the treaty. It is certainly one of the most infamous
outrages ever before attempted in this country, and if
endorsed by the Senate, would prove a lasting disgrace to the
Government.
The Cherokee Neutral treaties, which virtually robbed
thousands of settlers of their homes and made them suppli-
INDIAN LAND FRAUDS 307
cants at the feet of a land monopoly, were bad enough, but
God knows they will not in any way compare to this Osage
swindle. No adequate provisions have been made for any
portion of the settlers, and no provisions whatever made
for our common schools. These alone should be sufficient to
down the whole thing.
Yours truly,
S. J. CRAWFORD,
Governor.
With this information before them George W.
Julian of Indiana, Chairman of the House Committee
on Public Lands, and Judge Lawrence of Ohio, opened
with Gatling guns and riddled the treaty until it be-
came a stench, and was finally withdrawn from the
Senate.
CHEROKEE NEUTRAL LANDS
While this attempt to rob the Government, the
State of Kansas, the Osage Indians, and settlers on the
Osage lands, was being prosecuted with vigor, a sim-
ilar fraud was being perpetrated by a gang of boodlers,
on the Cherokee Indians and several thousand bona
fide settlers on the Cherokee Neutral Lands in South-
east Kansas.
As heretofore stated the Cherokee nation, by the
treaty of December 29, 1835, purchased eight hundred
thousand acres lying between the said Osage Reserva-
tion and the State of Missouri. By the treaty of 1866
the Cherokee nation authorized the United States to
sell these so-called neutral lands in trust for the Chero-
kee people.
Knowing that the Government had a right to sell
these lands, and naturally assuming that they would be
sold to actual bona fide settlers at a dollar and a
quarter per acre — as other public lands were sold — a
large number of qualified preemptors moved upon said
lands, selected each one hundred and sixty acres, built
homes, planted orchards, and began improving their
farms.
KANSAS IN THE SIXTIES
A powerful combination of land-grabbers — known
as the American Emigrant Company — with head-
quarters at Des Moines, Iowa (the home of Jas. Har-
lan, then Secretary of the Interior), set their active
brains to work, devising ways and means whereby they
might purchase these lands (eight hundred thousand
acres) in a body, at one-tenth of their real value.
This company, having secured the active support of
public spirited gentlemen in the two Houses of Con-
gress, applied to and purchased from the Hon. James
Harlan, Secretary of the Interior, the entire tract at
one dollar per acre, to be paid for at the convenience
of the purchasing company. This was said to be one
of the last official acts of Secretary Harlan. The pur-
chase was dated back, to cover accidents and show
vested rights antedating the rights of the settlers.
The deal was consummated at the dead hour of
midnight, without authority of law, and in violation of
every principle of right, justice, and humanity. But it
was sanctioned by the coterie of public spirited pa-
triots in Congress, who usually looked out for the main
chance.
Having signed, sealed, and delivered the bill of sale
for this vast body of land to the American Emigrant
Company, Secretary Harlan threw open the doors of
the Interior Department to his successor, the Hon. 0.
H. Browning, who walked in and immediately sent for
the papers in the matter of the sale of the Cherokee
Neutral Lands by his predecessor. Browning was a
lawyer, and it did not take him long to discover that
in the attempted sale of the neutral lands by Secretary
Harlan, the law had been violated, and a fraud com-
mitted. He therefore, as his first official act, declared
the sale null and void.
That set the gang, in and out of Congress, howling.
It was, in their estimation, an overt act of treason, for
which they were going to have Andy Johnson im-
peached. This method of getting even, however, was
INDIAN LAND FRAUDS 309
not sanctioned by the older heads. They thought they
could find a way out by another road that would an-
swer the same purpose and save the plunder. The
Osage swindle — called a treaty — was still hanging
in the balance and being riddled with hot shot, and it
would not do, as they put it, * * to stir up another hor-
net's nest." So they began to cast about and rea-
son among themselves as to the safest method of
procedure.
Some wanted to go direct to the President and offer
him a compaign contribution that would insure his re-
election. But the ' ' Old Subsidies, ' ' about the Capital,
said no, that might involve them in a scandal and en-
danger their own reelection. Others thought it best to
go to the new Secretary and lay the matter before him
as simply a grant of lands to aid in the construction of
railroads that would compensate the settlers for the
loss of their homes.
That seemed more feasible, but the question was,
Who will be the proper person to approach the Secre-
tary? Harlan could not do it, because he had made
the sale that was set aside, and his pride was mortally
wounded ; Grinnell could not do it, because he was Pres-
ident of Harlan 's company, and the Secretary had re-
fused to see him; Sturgis could not do it, because he
was regarded as a straw man ; Pomeroy could not go,
because he had voted against impeachment, and had
no influence with Secretary Browning; Sidney Clarke
could not do it, because he had been on both sides of
the Osage treaty, and was supporting the Cherokee
treaty in Washington and opposed to it in Kansas;
Senator Boss could not go, because he wanted the lands
sold to actual settlers at $1.25 per acre.
Therefore, to use a slang phrase, the schemers were
up against it. But not long did they have to tarry.
Some one, skilled in the science of official boodlery, dis-
covered a way out. James F. Joy, who was said to
have a finger in the Osage pie and to be a relative of
810 KANSAS IN THE SIXTIES
Secretary Browning, was thought to be the man of all
men to manage the Interior Department and bring or-
der out of chaos. In due time he was hastened to
the scene of action, and a new deal was speedily
consummated.
The Cherokee delegates then in the City of Wash-
ington — and as corrupt as Satan — were willing to do
what they could " for the good of the cause." Sec-
retary Browning, having revoked and set aside the sale
of said lands by his predecessor, immediately turned
around and sold the same lands to James F. Joy on
terms similar to the Harlan deal. That sale was sat-
isfactory to all parties interested, except the settlers
who were being robbed of their homes. But that sale,
like Harlan 's deal with the Emigrant Company, was
made without authority of law, and could not be-
come valid and binding without the approval of Con-
gress.
The beneficiaries under both deals, having pooled
their interests and sworn allegiance to each other, pre-
pared an Act which they called a treaty, ratifying and
confirming the consolidated fraud. This so-called
treaty was submitted to the Senate and supported by
the Kansas delegation in both Houses of Congress. It
was a cheat and a fraud in every particular, and should
have been encircled with hell's blackest marks. The
pretended authority for this gigantic swindle was a
proviso in Article 17 of the Cherokee treaty of July 19,
1866, which reads as follows:
Provided, that nothing in this article shall prevent the
Secretary of the Interior from selling the whole of said lands
not occupied by actual settlers at the date of the ratification
of this treaty, not exceeding one hundred and sixty acres to
each person entitled to preemption under the preemption
laws of the United States, in a body, to any responsible party,
for cash, for a sum not less than one dollar per acre.
The manifest intent and purpose of this treaty was
to have the lands sold in tracts of one hundred and
sixty acres to qualified preemptors for cash. Certainly
INDIAN LAND FRAUDS 311
the treaty did not authorize the Secretary of the In-
terior to sell the land on time payments ; and yet that
is what Secretary Halan attempted to do. Secretary
Browning, as already shown, being shocked at Har-
lan's utter disregard of the law, signalized his advent
into office, by revoking the sale and selling the same
lands to his friend Joy — provided he could get Con-
gress to ratify his illegal act. The sale of the same
tract of land by two Secretaries to two different par-
ties, without authority, was rather an unusual pro-
ceeding. The transactions caused a good many old-
fashioned people and about five thousand settlers on
the lands to sit up and take notice. Nevertheless the
stake was too valuable to be lost without an effort.
Therefore the boodlers, as heretofore shown, pooled
their issue and appealed to the Senate of the United
States to help them out.
That the reader may understand their methods
from the wording of their appeal — which they called
a * * Supplemental Treaty ' - 1 copy the marvellous
document in full, which is reproduced in the Appendix.
This so-called treaty was manifestly drawn to har-
monize conflicting interests among the boodlers. It
ratified and confirmed everything that had been done,
legal or otherwise, by the two Secretaries and the two
purchasing parties. According to this treaty, Secre-
tary Harlan sold these eight hundred thousand acres
to his Emigrant Company on August 30, 1866, just
nineteen days after the original Cherokee treaty was
ratified.
That sale, if valid or subsequently made valid by
the Senate, shut out settlers from the day it was made.
Hence it was important to validate it and authorize the
Company to assign their contract to James F. Joy, be-
cause most of the settlers on the land had entered and
made settlement after August 30, 1866. In all respects
it was an infamous transaction, which went hand in
hand with the Osage swindle, that was then pending
before the Senate.
312 KANSAS IN THE SIXTIES
OPPOSED BY STATE OFFICERS
The State authorities fought both schemes as best
they could, but with Pomeroy in the Senate actively
supporting both treaties, and Sidney Clarke — the
sole Representative from Kansas — in the House, play-
ing hide-and-seek, it was difficult to make headway
against such a powerful combination. In February,
1868, I wrote the Hon. George W. Julian, Chairman
of the House Committee on Public Lands as follows :
EXECUTIVE DEPARTMENT,
TOPEKA, KAN., Feb. 20, 1868.
HON. GEO. W. JULIAN,
Ch. Com. on Public Lands,
Washington, D. C.
SIR:
I enclose herewith a copy of a resolution adopted by the
Board of Directors of the Kansas and Neosho Valley Rail-
road Company, relating to the Cherokee neutral lands, to
which I invite your attention.
I protest, as the Legislature has protested, against placing
the bona fide settlers on these lands in the power of the pur-
chasers, with the right to impose upon them a high price for
the homesteads on which they have settled in good faith.
Congress should take some steps to protect the settlers,
either by annulling the contract of sale, or otherwise. They
have gone upon these lands and made their improvements, in
the fullest faith that they would be permitted to secure titles
from the Government at a cost not exceeding a dollar and
a quarter per acre.
The number of these settlers is quite large ; they feel
justly sensitive upon finding themselves apparently in the
power of speculators; and I feel quite certain that an
attempt to exact from them the prices named in the resolu-
tion of the Eailroad Company will result in trouble.
I trust, therefore, that Congress will feel it to be its duty
to devise and enact some measure of relief for the settlers.
I also enclose a copy of my late Message and refer par-
ticularly to that portion which treats of this subject.
Very respectfully, Your obdt. servant,
(Signed) S. J. CRAWFORD, Governor.
INDIAN LAND FRAUDS 313
I also wrote similar letters to Senators Pomeroy,
Ross, John B. Henderson, and others. The following
was my last despatch on the subject.
EXECUTIVE DEPARTMENT,
TOPEKA, KAN., July 25, 1868.
HON. E. G. Ross,
TJ. S. Senate,
Washington, D. C.
If the Cherokee Supplemental Treaty is ratified, it will
deprive the State of 47,000 acres of school land, and place
thousands of settlers at the mercy of Joy and his Railroad
Company. I trust you may be able to defeat it.
SAM'L J. CRAWFORD.
Nevertheless, the treaty was ratified; and most of
the officials who helped to consummate the fraud are
now dead.
In the making of these treaties with the Osages and
Cherokees, the officials of the Indian Office who were
appointed or detailed for the purpose, should not be
held responsible for the objectionable provisions. They
simply carried out their instructions from higher au-
thority. They were directed to take the treaties,
which had already been prepared, and have them
signed by the Indians ; and that was the extent of their
interest. Secretary Browning and ex-Secretary Har-
lan were responsible for both treaties ; and the know-
ing ones in the Senate, who understood the object and
purpose of the schemes, were the responsible parties
in that body.
Having lost out on this Cherokee treaty, the State
subsequently applied to Congress, and received au-
thority to select indemnity lands in lieu of school sec-
tions, lost by reason of the ratification of the Cherokee
treaty. The settlers had the privilege of either mov-
ing off, or paying Joy and his gang a handsome bonus
for their homes, which they should have been allowed
to purchase from the Government at one dollar and
a quarter per acre.
314 KANSAS IN THE SIXTIES
Thus ended a dark chapter in the early history of
Kansas. Some of the actors prospered for a time and
then went down and out in poverty. Others paid a
more costly penalty; while one of the leading actors
lost his reason and became an object of pity. The
mills of the gods grind slow ; but they grind - and
sometimes exceedingly fine. Retribution in those days
was swift and severe.
FBAUDTJLENT SALE OF THE SAC AND FOX LANDS
Previous to this wholesale raid by Joy and the
American Emigrant Company on the Osage and Cher-
okee Neutral Lands, the Secretary of the Interior
had sold — under sealed bids — of the Sac and Fox In-
dian lands situated in Osage and Lyon Counties, two
hundred and sixty-three thousand, three hundred and
thirty-nine acres, as follows:
To Wm. R. McKean, 29,677 acres at 64 cents per acre.
To Fuller & McDonald, 39,058 acres at 73 cents per acre.
To Robt. S. Stevens, 51,689 acres at 71 cents per acre.
To John McManus, 142,915 acres at $1.09 per acre.
which was an average of ninety-one cents per acre
while the settlers bid from five to seven dollars per
acre.
This, however, was a small affair as compared with
the Osage deal. The settlers' sealed bids in some way
failed to reach their destination, while the bids of
11 responsible " parties were promptly received.
The purchasers were liberal, if not generous. The
settlers, who were able, were permitted to buy the
lands they occupied at prices ranging from five to
seven dollars per acre. Some of them by reason of
short crops could not make the required payment,
whereupon they were ordered by the Secretary of the
Interior to vacate and go thence. Some of them had
exhausted their means, and could not go. Then the
War Department was asked to drive them off with
INDIAN LAND FRAUDS 315
the army. In some countries that would have pro-
duced bloodshed; but not so here. The settlers were
law-abiding people, and they had faith that the wrong
would be righted.
General Grant complied with the official request of
the Secretary of the Interior for the removal of the
settlers, by issuing the necessary orders ; but the U. S.
troops then in Kansas were looking after hostile In-
dians on the frontier, and not much headway was made
in dispossessing the settlers. In fact the troops —
both officers and men — detested that kind of scaven-
ger work.
Nevertheless, the parties who had bought these
lands, and the Secretary of the Interior who had sold
them from under the settlers at ninety-one cents per
acre, were clamorous to have the settlers removed or
compelled to pay an exorbitant price for their home-
steads. The request was renewed in 1868, when Gen-
eral Grant again directed General Sheridan to see
that his orders were executed. On receipt of this order
General Sheridan informed me that he had directed
the settlers that they must go at once; whereupon I
sent the following despatch to General Grant:
EXECUTIVE OFFICE,
TOPEKA, KAN., June 4, 1868.
GEN. U. S. GRANT,
Washington, D. C.
I do earnestly request that you suspend the execution of
your orders to Gen. Sherman of date 1866-67 (directing him
to inquire into and remove settlers from Indian reservations
in Kansas) until the facts can be reported by mail. Col.
M. V. Sheridan is now engaged in this work. He had
ordered the settlers to leave the Sac and Fox Reservation by
Saturday next, which if persisted in will inflict great suffer-
ing upon these poor people, who will be thrown upon the
prairie without any means upon which to subsist their fam-
ilies; and no possible good can result to the Government or
Indians from the execution of these orders.
SAM 'L J. CRAWFORD, Governor.
316 KANSAS IN THE SIXTIES
After this, General Sheridan was recalled, and the
settlers were allowed more time either to pay for their
lands or remove elsewhere. Most of them moved away
and started in life anew.
The treaty providing for the sale of the Sac and
Fox lands in Kansas was a transparent fraud, and
never should have been ratified by the Senate ; and the
same is true of the treaty with the Ottawa and Kaw
tribes. The truth is, the Indian policy then and for
many years thereafter, was all-round bad. It led to
many Indian wars, massacres, and crimes too hor-
rible to relate. It led to such treaties as I have men-
tioned, and to the robbery of both Indians and settlers
by wholesale.
CHAPTER XXIH
FALL AND WINTEB CAMPAIGN OF 1868-69
EESIGNATION AS GOVERNOR OFF TO CAMP SUPPLY CUS-
TER's FIGHT WITH BAND OF CHEYENNES CAPTIVES
SLAIN GENERAL SHERIDAN 's ACCOUNT SURREN-
DER OF INDIAN CHIEFS COL. MOORE 's REPORT ON THE
PURSUIT AND RELEASE OF CAPTIVES THE MISTAKEN
POLICY OF THE GOVERNMENT.
SCARCELY had the battle over the Osage and Cher-
O okee treaties closed when the hostile Indians re-
newed their savagery in Western Kansas. They did
not venture down to the settlements along the border,
except in their attack on the Kaws at Council Grove
and in Northwest Kansas, but confined their depreda-
tions to overland travel and transportation along the
Kansas Pacific Eailroad, Smoky Hill River, and the
old Santa Fe Trail leading to Colorado and New
Mexico.
The Peace Commission had been making strenuous
efforts to quiet them down and induce them to return
to their reservations in the Indian Territory, but the
noble redskins said, " No." They wanted more scalps,
horses, mules, and other valuables. Like Logan of old,
peace troubled their minds, and having been supplied
with arms, ammunition, provisions, clothing, and war-
paint, by the Government and the Indian traders, they
were now ready for the war-path.
When they appeared in full dress and ready for a
Fall campaign, General Hazen suddenly discovered
that they had been trifling with him, and so notified
General Sheridan, who immediately telegraphed me
as follows :
317
818 KANSAS IN THE SIXTIES
FORT HAYS, KANSAS, October 8, 1868.
Gov. CRAWFORD:
Gen. Hazen has informed me that the friendly overtures
which were made to the Kiowas and Comanehes at Larned,
on the nineteenth and twentieth of September, 1868, have
failed to secure peace with them, or removal to their reserva-
tion ; and I am authorized to muster in one regiment of cav-
alry from your State for a period of six months. I will
communicate further with you on the subject on receipt of
additional instruction from Gen. Sherman.
P. H. SHERIDAN,
Maj. Gen. U. S. A.
This was exactly what I had been expecting.
Everybody familiar with the character and habits of
the wild tribes knew that the young Kiowas and Com-
anches had been with the Cheyennes, Arapahoes, and
Apaches on the war-path from the day they drew
their arms and ammunition from the Government in
August.
General Hazen should have known it, but he was a
good-natured, easy victim for the treacherous Indians.
They had been loitering around Forts Larned and
Dodge all Spring, drawing rations and clothing from
the Government, and promising to return to their res-
ervations, if the authorities would give them arms and
ammunition. Sheridan, at first, would not listen to
their demands; but finally he yielded when General
Sully and the Indian Agents vouched for the good
faith of the Indians.
As already stated, the guns, pistols, and ammuni-
tion were issued at Larned on the third of August, and
within three days the Indians were on the Smoky Hill
and along the Kansas Pacific Railroad murdering, rob-
bing, and scalping white people indiscriminately. On
the fourteenth they attacked the settlements in the
Saline, Solomon, and Republican Valleys, and left a
trail of blood and smoking ruins behind them.
That should have convinced General Hazen that
they could not be trusted. But it did not. Having
CAMPAIGN OP 1868-69 319
waged a horrible war on the settlements and over the
plains for two months, and having run out of ammuni-
tion, they returned to Fort Lamed with the scalps of
their victims dangling from their belts. There they
made loud professions of friendship, and begged for
more ammunition with which to Mil game for food,
while en route to their reservations. Again they were
supplied, and again they were on the war-path. Hence
General Hazen 's despatch to Sheridan.
This settled the question as to the advisability of a
Fall and Winter campaign. It was understood by all
that the hostile Indians would have to be driven to
their winter haunts in the southwestern part of the
Indian Territory and punished severely in order to
subdue and keep them on their reservations.
General Sherman, therefore, having lost confidence
in the Peace Commission, and all patience with the In-
dians, directed General Sheridan to proceed. On re-
ceipt of authority the General telegraphed me as
follows :
HEADQUARTERS DEPARTMENT OF THE MISSOURI,
IN THE FIELD, FORT HAYS, Oct. 9, 1868.
His EXCELLENCY S. J. CRAWFORD, Governor of Kansas:
Under directions received through Lieutenant General
"W. T. Sherman, commanding Military Division of the Mis-
souri, from the Hon. Secretary of "War, I am authorized to
call on you for one (1) regiment of mounted volunteers, to
serve for a period of six (6) months, unless sooner dis-
charged, against hostile Indians on the plains. I therefore
request that you furnish said regiment as speedily as possible,
to be rendezvoused and mustered into the service of the
United States at Topeka, Kansas.
The regiment to consist of one colonel, one lieutenant-
colonel, three majors, twelve captains, twelve first-lieutenants,
twelve second-lieutenants, twelve companies of one hundred
(100) men each, including the required number of non-com-
missioned officers specified in the United States Army Regu-
lations (1863), the pay, allowances, and emoluments of officers
and men to be the same as that of United States troops.
The men will be rationed from the time of their arrival
320
at the rendezvous, and will be furnished with arms, equip-
ments, horses, and clothing from the date of muster into the
service of the United States.
I have the honor to be, very respectfully, your obedient
servant,
P. H. SHERIDAN,
Major General, U. S. A.
On receipt of this despatch I immediately issued a
call for troops.*
The response to this Proclamation was made with
alacrity, and a regiment of twelve hundred men speed-
ily recruited and mustered into the United States serv-
ice for six months. As every one knew, the campaign
was to be made in the dead of winter against five war-
like tribes in remote and almost inaccessible regions.
Such an expedition had time and again been declared
by officers of the army to be impossible; and yet it
seemed to be the only way to bring the hostile Indians
to a sense of their duty.
In a letter to General Sheridan of date October 15,
General Sherman said:
As to extermination, it is for the Indians themselves to
determine. We don't want to exterminate or even fight them.
At best it is an inglorious war, not apt to add much to our
fame or personal comfort; and for our soldiers, to whom we
owe our first thoughts, it is all danger and extreme labor,
without a single compensating advantage. . . As brave
men, and as the soldiers of a government which has exhausted
its peace efforts, we, in the performance of a most unpleasent
duty, accept the war begun by our enemies, and hereby
resolve to make its end final. If it results in the utter
annihilation of these Indians, it is but the result of what
they have been warned again and again, and for which they
seem fully prepared. I will say nothing and do nothing to
restrain our troops from doing what they deem proper on the
spot, and will allow no mere vague general charges of cruelty
and inhumanity to tie their hands, but will use all the powers
confided to me to the end that these Indians, the enemies of
*See Appendix.
CAMPAIGN OF 1868-69 321
our race and of our civilization, shall not again be able to
begin and carry on their barbarous warfare on any kind of
pretext that they may choose to allege. I believe that this
winter will afford us the opportunity, and that before the
snow falls these Indians will seek some sort of peace, to be
broken next year at their option ; but we will not accept their
peace, or cease our efforts till all the past acts are both pun-
ished and avenged. You may now go ahead in your own
way, and I will back you with my whole authority, and stand
between you and any efforts that may be attempted in your
rear to restrain your purpose or check your troops.
From this, as will be observed, General Sherman
agreed to stand between Sheridan and the Interior
Department — the course of all our Indian troubles.
Nevertheless, Sheridan, on account of an erroneous
sentiment in the Eastern States concerning the In-
dians, was anxious to have the State authorities behind
him. On that account and for the reason that I knew a
winter campaign was the only thing that would end the
Indian war and keep the savages on their reserva-
tions, I resolved to resign as Governor and to accom-
pany the expedition.
Before resigning my office I issued a Thanksgiving
Proclamation,* November 4, 1868, after which and
on the same day I was appointed and mustered in as
Colonel of the new regiment. f
OFF TO CAMP SUPPLY
The regiment broke camp at Topeka on the morn-
ing of November 5, and started for Camp Supply, the
point designated by General Sheridan as a rendezvous
for the troops that were to participate in the campaign.
From Topeka we marched by way of Emporia to the
Arkansas River, where the city of Wichita now stands
— a distance of one hundred and fifty miles in seven
days.
*See Appendix.
tSee Appendix for roster of regimental officers, the Nineteenth
Kansas Cavalry.
322 KANSAS IN THE SIXTIES
At Wichita — or Camp Beecher, as we called it —
we expected to find ten days' rations and forage for
the regiment, which had previously been ordered from
Fort Eiley by General Sheridan ; but on arriving there
we found that one-half the rations had been consumed
by U. S. troops, while only a part of the forage had
reached its destination.
Then it became a question whether we should pro-
ceed on a two-hundred-mile march from Wichita to
Camp Supply through an unknown country, with in-
experienced guides, or wait and send back to Fort Biley
for rations and forage. The country through which
we had to pass was known to contain large herds of
buffalo and flocks of deer and wild turkey ; and as yet
no snow had fallen ; so, after considering the question
in all its bearings, I determined to move on.
Having loaded our wagons with such supplies as
had not been consumed by the troops stationed at
Wichita, I crossed the Arkansas River on the morning
of November 14 and moved in a southwesterly direc-
tion toward Camp Supply. As heretofore stated, the
distance in a direct line was two hundred miles through
an unknown country, with no road, no bridges over the
streams, and no guide who knew anything of the form-
ation of the country. It was a bold dash into the wild-
erness with a regiment of one thousand officers and
men, at the approach of winter.
For the first five days we marched on an average
twenty miles per day, and improvised our own cross-
ings over the rivers and small streams. On the even-
ing of November 18, after a hard day's march, the
horses of one battalion stampeded and caused a delay
of one day. On the morning of the nineteenth we were
overtaken by a snow storm, which continued without in-
termission for forty-eight hours, and until the ground
was covered to a depth of ten inches. The next morn-
ing we moved as usual and made a good day 's march
notwithstanding the snow.
CAMPAIGN OF 1868-69 323
Here, our rations and forage having been ex-
hausted, it became necessary to resort to strategy.
Buffalo in large herds were found in abundance, so
we had no fears of the men suffering for food. But our
forage was gone, and the privation began to tell on the
horses and mules. From the day we left Wichita great
care had been taken to camp early in the afternoon and
let the animals graze. Now we were in a country where
timber was more plentiful and grass not so abundant.
On going into camp every afternoon a heavy detail
of men would take the horses and mules out and scrap-
ing the snow away from the grass, let the animals
graze until dark. Meantime other details would cut
cottonwood limbs and other green bushes and place
them under the picket line where the stock would
browse during the night. Thus we moved along
through the ever-increasing snow and over the hills
and hollows until we reached the brakes of the Cimar-
ron River.
There I established a camp for the dismounted men
and disabled horses and mules, and sent Captain Pliley
forward with his troop to Camp Supply for rations
and forage. Here the buffalo were still within easy
reach, and the men had an abundance of meat ; but our
stock was suffering for lack of forage, and on account
of the intensely cold nights.
Leaving Major Jenkins in charge of the camp, with
three hundred and sixty men and two hundred and
fifty tired-out horses and mules, I took the remainder
of the regiment (about six hundred men), pushed on
to Camp Supply, and arrived there on November 26 —
just twelve days out from Wichita.
Meantime Captain Pliley had returned to the camp
with supplies and forage, and on the twenty-ninth
Major Jenkins came in with his portion of the com-
mand— without the loss of a man from the day we
left Topeka.
Thus from Wichita to Camp Supply we made the
324 KANSAS IN THE SIXTIES
march over all obstacles in twelve days — a distance
of over two hundred and twenty-five miles actually
travelled. It was two hundred miles in a direct line ;
but a column winding its way around hills, ravines, and
bad crossings, necessarily had to deviate from the
direct route.
"When we arrived, General Sheridan expressed him-
self as highly pleased, and seemed to think that under
all the circumstances we had made a wonderful march.
He excused himself for sending me guides who knew
nothing about the country through which we had
passed ; and if I am not mistaken, he reprimanded the
captain in command of the U. S. troops at Wichita, for
consuming the rations and forage which he had sent
there for my regiment.
But in writing of this expedition twenty years later,
in his ' ' Memoirs, ' ' he goes out of his way to reflect on
the officers of the regiment and, in doing so, contradicts
what he said when we arrived at Camp Supply, and
what he said in his official report.
On the march from Wichita to Camp Supply, there
was no road ; not even an Indian trail. It was simply
a southwest course through an uninhabited country
from one point to another, with only the sun and the
compass as guides. There was nothing from which to
get lost. There were no roads nor cross-roads to mis-
lead us ; and at the time General Sheridan understood
that fact.
We made the march in twelve days, and if, as he
says, we had been subsisting on buffalo meat for ' l eight
or nine days," it simply shows that we marched the
greater part of the distance without rations or forage.
The truth is that General Sheridan, knowing nothing
of the country over which we marched, was laboring
under a misapprehension of facts. He had been mis-
informed by his scouts and others, whose reputations
and wages depended largely on their skill as liars.
CAMPAIGN or 1868-69 825
OUSTER'S FIGHT WITH BAND OF CHEYENNES
General Sheridan, with General Ouster and the
Seventh Cavalry, reached Camp Supply from Fort
Hays a week or so before I arrived, and was anxious to
push forward to where the Indians were supposed to be
in winter quarters. While waiting for my regiment,
he sent Custer out with his regiment on a reconnoitring
expedition ; who, striking an Indian trail, followed it to
the Washita Valley, where he fought a battle with
Black Kettle's band of Cheyennes. A number of In-
dians and Indian ponies were killed, and their camp
wag captured and destroyed.
In the fight Custer lost two officers — Major Elliott
and Captain Hamilton — and a number of men. From
the Washita he returned to Camp Supply, and on the
seventh of December General Sheridan with both regi-
ments, the Seventh U. S. Cavalry and the Nineteenth
Kansas Cavalry, moved forward to the Washita, where
Custer had fought Black Kettle the week before. Here
the bodies of Elliott and Hamilton were recovered, and
the soldiers of the Seventh who had been killed were
buried.
CAPTIVES SLAIN
The bodies were buried, also, of two Kansas cap-
tives — Mrs. Blinn and her little boy — who had been
killed by the Indians and left on the field a mile or
so from where the fight occurred. This unfortunate
woman and her husband and child were returning
home from Colorado, when, on the ninth of October
the train with which they were travelling was attacked
and captured by the Cheyennes. The men were all
killed and the poor woman and her child carried into
captivity.
While she was a prisoner with the Cheyennes, some
Mexican traders visited their camp, and at the risk
of her life she slipped a letter into their hands, which
reads as follows:
326 KANSAS IN THE SIXTIES
November 7, 1868.
Kind friends, whoever you may be: I thank you for
your kindness to me and my child. You want me to let you
know my wishes. If you could only buy us of the Indians
with ponies or anything, and let me come and stay with you
until I can get word to my friends, they would pay you, and
I would work and do all I could for you. If it is not too
far to their camp, and you are not afraid to come, I pray
that you will try. They tell me, as near as I can understand,
they expect traders to come and they will sell us to them.
Can you find out by this man and let me know if it is white
men ? If it is Mexicans, I am afraid they would sell us into
slavery in Mexico. If you can do nothing for me, write to
W. T. Harrington, Ottawa, Franklin County, Kansas, my
father; tell him we are with the Cheyennes, and they say
when the white men make peace we can go home. Tell him
to write the Governor of Kansas about it, and for them to
make peace. Send this to him. We were taken on the ninth
of October, on the Arkansas, below Fort Lyon. I cannot tell
whether they killed my husband or not. My name is Mrs.
Clara Blinn. My little boy, Willie Blinn, is two years old.
Do all you can for me. Write to the peace commissioners to
make peace this Fall. For our sakes do all you can, and
God will bless you. If you can, let me hear from you again ;
let me know what you think about it. Write to my father;
send him this. Good-bye.
MRS. R. F. BLINN.
I am as well as can be expected, but my baby is very weak.
As shown by her letter, the father of this woman
resided in Franklin County, but I was never able to
get into communication with him.
On the day of the fight with Black Kettle, Ouster
held his ground until dark, when, the Indians being
rapidly reinforced, he retired, leaving his dead on the
field. A week later when Sheridan was advancing with
Ouster's regiment and the Nineteenth Kansas, the In-
dians broke camp on the Washita and fled; the Chey-
ennes retreating southward, and the Kiowas, Coman-
ches, and Arapahoes going down the Washita Valley
toward the Wichita Mountains.
CAMPAIGN OF 1868-69 327
When this break-up occurred and we were ready to
start in pursuit, it was not known that the Cheyennes
had slipped off south with the captive women from
Kansas, Mrs. Morgan and Miss White. Hence General
Sherman, on the morning of December 12, broke camp
and started down the Washita Valley in pursuit of the
main body of Indians, who left a wide trail behind
them.
GEN. SHERIDAN'S ACCOUNT
The snow was falling in sheets and the weather was
intensely cold. For a vivid account of this march down
the Washita to Fort Cobb, I quote from General Sher-
idan's report, as follows:
At an early hour on December 12 the command pulled
out from its cozy camp and pushed down the valley of the
Washita, following immediately on the Indian trail which led
in the direction of Fort Cobb; but before going far it was
found that the many deep ravines and canons on this trail
would delay our train very much, so we moved out of the
valley, and took the level prairie on the divide. Here the
travelling was good, and a rapid gait was kept up till mid-
day, when, another storm of sleet and snow coming on, it
became extremely difficult for the guides to make out the
proper course ; and, fearing that we might get lost or caught
on the open plain without food or water — as we had been on
the Canadian — I turned the command back to the valley,
resolved to try no more short cuts involving a risk of a dis-
aster to the expedition. But, to get back was no slight task,
for a dense fog just now enveloped us, obscuring the land-
marks. However, we were headed right when the fog set in,
and we had the good luck to reach the valley before night-
fall, though there was a great deal of floundering about, and
also much disputing among the guides as to where the river
would be found. Fortunately we struck the stream right at
a large grove of timber, and established ourselves admirably.
By dark the ground was covered with twelve or fifteen inches
of fresh snow, and, as usual, the temperature rose very sen-
sibly while the storm was on, but after nightfall the snow
ceased and the skies cleared up. Daylight having brought
328 KANSAS IN THE SIXTIES
zero weather again, our start on the morning of the thir-
teenth was painful work, many of the men freezing their
fingers while handling the horses, equipments, harness, and
tents. However, we got off in fairly good season, and kept to
the trail along the "Washita, notwithstanding the frequent
digging and bridging necessary to get the wagons over
ravines.
According to this report, as will be observed, the
floundering was not all done by the Nineteenth Kansas
Cavalry, while en route to Camp Supply.
Late in the afternoon of the seventeenth, after a
continuous forced march of six days, we drove in the
enemy's rear-guard and would have attacked the main
force of Indians that day, but for the lateness of the
hour. That night we camped on the north side of the
Washita, about two miles from the Indian camp. We
were then about twenty miles from Fort Cobb, and
during the night a number of the Indian chiefs ran into
Fort Cobb, surrendered to General Hazen — repre-
senting the Interior Department — and were back at
their camp by the break of day.
On the morning of the eighteenth Sheridan moved
in double column with the train between the two regi-
ments, intending to throw his men forward into line
and open the fight as soon as he came within striking
distance. When within a mile of the Indians two of
Hazen 's scouts — a man by the name of Hart and a
half-breed Comanche — came out from the Indian
camp and handed General Sheridan a note from Hazen,
saying in substance, that the Indians had surrendered
to him the previous night and that he had promised
that they should not be attacked by the troops then
advancing.
STJEBENDEE OF INDIAN CHIEFS
Sheridan immediately called a halt and while con-
sulting a few of the officers as to what should be done,
a number of chiefs rode out in front of their camp and
CAMPAIGN OF 1868-69 329
two of them — Satanta, of the Kiowas, and a Com-
manche chief — started to meet us. When within a
half-mile they suddenly took fright and, wheeling their
ponies, started back at full speed. Sheridan not know-
ing what they meant ordered his scouts to bring them
in. The scouts, being better mounted than the chiefs,
soon overtook and brought them back as prisoners.
Then Sheridan moved his command forward to within
striking distance, and taking some of the other leading
chiefs prisoners, ordered the remaining tribes to re-
port to him at Fort Cobb on a certain day.
Thus, after an arduous winter campaign, at a
heavy expense to the Government, and when a perma-
nent suppression of these hostile tribes was almost
within our grasp, the Interior Department — the
source of all the troubles — again stepped in and at-
tempted to snatch the victory, at whatever cost, from
the War Department.
But fortunately General Sheridan was there, and
while he could not violate the agreement just con-
cluded by General Hazen, he was not going to let
Hazen baffle him entirely out of the fruits of the ex-
pedition. He remained at Cobb until all the tribes,
except the Cheyennes, came in and then he ordered
them to move south fifty miles to Cache Creek, where
grazing was better for our horses and the Indian
ponies.
On the first of January, 1869, I crossed the Wash-
ita and moved south with my regiment to where Fort
Sill now stands. Within a day or so Custer with the
Seventh Cavalry followed, and soon thereafter the In-
dians began to make their appearance in that vicinity.
Sheridan remained at Cobb a few days and then came
over and established Fort Sill.
The Indian chiefs, as prisoners, were entrusted to
my care. While they pretended to be good now and
for all time to come, they were at all times gnashing
their teeth and watching for an opportunity to se-
330 KANSAS IN THE SIXTIES
cape. Gradually they all came in and made all sorts
of good promises for the future, except the Cheyennes,
who were away west of the Wichita Mountains with
the women they had captured in Kansas.
Most of the hostile bands, having come in and sur-
rendered to General Sheridan and sent their requisi-
tions to General Hazen at Fort Cobb for rations and
clothing, I could see no reason why I should remain
longer with the command. The Cheyennes. as already
stated, were still out with the captives — one a young
bride of three weeks when captured, and the other a
charming young lady of eighteen.
But it was apparent that the expedition, as such,
had been brought to a close by the intervention of Gen-
eral Hazen; and, no arrangement having been made
for the payment of my regiment when mustered out of
service, I turned the command over to Lieutenant-
Colonel Moore, a worthy officer, preeminently quali-
fied to subdue the Cheyennes and compel the surren-
der of the captives.
On the fourteenth day of February, 1869, I re-
signed ; and on the fifteenth, with a light escort, I left
Fort Sill for Washington by way of Fort Gibson and
Topeka. The next morning after my arrival in that
city, I called on the Secretary of War, and was in-
formed that Congress had adjourned without making
an appropriation to pay the regiment. Fortunately,
however, General Sherman, who had called the regi-
ment into service, was in the city; and he and I, after
much argument and persuasion, finally prevailed on
the Secretary to order the payment out of his Con-
tingent Fund.
COL. MOORE'S REPORT ON THE PURSUIT AND RELEASE OF
CAPTIVES
General Sheridan, having arranged for the expe-
dition against the Cheyennes, left Fort Sill for Wash-
ington by way of Camp Supply and Fort Hays. Gen-
CAMPAIGN OF 1868-69 331
eral Ouster and Colonel Moore were left at Fort Sill
with their regiments, to proceed against the Chey-
ennes and bring home the captives. That they accom-
plished their purpose with skill, courage, and powers
of endurance, is shown by an able address, delivered
by Colonel Moore before the Kansas State Historical
Society, of date January 19, 1897. In this address Col-
onel Moore says:
On the second of March, 1869, the Nineteenth Kansas
and the Seventh Cavalry marched from Fort Sill with inten-
tion to find Little Robe's band of Cheyennes. The command
marched to the west, and on the second day out camped
at Old Camp Radziminski, a camp where the Second Dra-
goons, under Colonel van Dora, wintered, long before the
war. The course was still west, across the North Fork of Red
River and across the Salt Fork of Red River, till the com-
mand reached Gypsum Creek. Here the command was
divided. Most of the train, and all the footsore and disabled,
were sent to the north up the North Fork and along the
State line (of Texas), with orders to procure commissary
stores and halt on the Washita till joined by the balance of
the command.
The Seventh and Nineteenth then pushed on up the Salt
Fork, and on the sixth of March struck the trail of the
Indians. It was broad and easy to follow as an ordinary
country road. The scanty rations were now reduced one-
half, and the pursuit began in earnest. At the head waters
of the Salt Fork the trail turned north and skirted along the
foot of the Llano Estacado. The trail led through a sandy
mesquite country, entirely without game, although the
streams coming out of the staked plain furnished abundance
of water. By the twelfth of March rations were reduced
again. The mules were now dying very fast, of starvation, as
they bad nothing to live on except the buds and bark of cot-
tonwood trees cut down for them to browse on. Every morn-
ing the mules and horses that were unable to travel were
killed by cutting their throats and the extra wagons run
together and set on fire. On the seventeenth the command
came on to Indian camp-fires with the embers still smoulder-
ing. The rations were all exhausted on the eighteenth, and
832 KANSAS IN THE SIXTIES
the men subsisted, from that on, on mule meat, without bread
or salt.
On the afternoon of the twentieth the Nineteenth Kan-
sas came in sight of a band of ponies off to the west of the
line of march, which was now in a northeast direction. In a
few minutes Indians began to cross the line of march in
front of the command, going with all haste toward the herd.
The regiment quickened its pace, and I directed the line of
march to the point from which the Indians were coming. In
another mile the head of the column came upon a low bluff
overlooking the bottom of the Sweetwater, and saw a group
of two hundred and fifty Cheyenne lodges stretching up and
down the stream and not more than one hundred yards from
the bluff. The men thought of the long marches, the short
rations, the cold storms, of Mrs. Blinn and her little boy, of
the hundred murders in Kansas, and, when the order " Left
front into line " was given, the rear companies came over
the ground like athletes. But " there is many a slip 'twixt
the cup and the lip." Lieutenant Cook, Seventh Cavalry,
rode up to the commanding officer, and, touching his hat,
said, " The General sends his compliments, with instructions
not to fire on the Indians." It was a wet blanket, saturated
with ice-water. In a minute another aide came with orders
to march the command a little way up stream and down into
the valley to rest. The order was executed, and the regiment
formed in column of companies, with orders to rest. The men
laid down on the ground or sat on the logs, but always with
their carbines in hand. Custer was close by, sitting in the
centre of a circle of Indian chiefs holding a powwow. In
two or three minutes an officer of the Seventh came up, and
in a low tone asked that a few officers put on their side-arms
and drop down one at a time to listen to the talk. While
Custer talked he watched the officers as they gathered around,
and in a few minutes he got up onto his feet and said, ' ' Take
these Indians prisoners." There was a short but pretty sharp
struggle, and a guard with loaded guns formed a line around
these half-dozen chiefs, and Custer continued the talk. But
he had pulled out another stop. The tone was different. He
told them they had two white women of Kansas, and they
must deliver them up to him. They denied this before, but
now they admitted it, and said the women were at another
camp, fifteen miles farther down the creek. He told them to
CAMPAIGN OF 1868-69 333
instruct the people to pick up this camp and move down to
the camp mentioned, and we would come down the next day
and get the women.
As soon as the chiefs were taken prisoners, the warriors
mounted their ponies, and, armed with guns or bows and
arrows, circled around the bivouac of the troops. They
looked very brave and warlike. They wore head-dresses of
eagle feathers, clean buckskin leggings and moccasins, and
buckskin coats trimmed with ample fringe. Lieutenant John-
son, commissary of the Nineteenth, watched them awhile, and
then remarked : ' ' This is the farthest I ever walked to see a
circus. " In a surprisingly short time after Ouster gave them
permission, the whole camp was pulled down, loaded onto
the ponies, and not an Indian was in sight except the half-
dozen held by the guards. Another night of stout hearts but
restless stomachs, and in the morning the command began a
march of fifteen miles down the Sweetwater to the other
camp. The trail was broad and fresh for five miles, and then
it began to thin out and get dimmer and dimmer, until at the
end of ten miles not a blade of grass was broken. At the
end of fifteen miles an old camp was reached, but no Indians
had been there for two months. The regiment bivouacked
for the night, and General Ouster had the head chief taken
down to the creek, a riata put around his neck and the other
end thrown over the limb of a tree. A couple of soldiers
took hold of the other end of the rope, and, by pulling
gently, lifted him up onto his toes. He was let down, and
Borneo, the interpreter, explained to him that, when he was
pulled up clear from the ground and left there, he would be
hung.
The grizzly old savage seemed to understand the matter
fully, and then Ouster told him if they did not bring those
women in by the time the sun got within a hand's breadth
of the horizon on the next day, he would hang the chiefs on
those trees. He let the old chief's son go to carry the man-
date to the tribe. It was a long night, but everybody knew
the next afternoon would settle the matter in some way. As
the afternoon drew on, the men climbed the hills around
camp, watching the horizon ; and about four P. M. a mounted
Indian came on to a ridge a mile away. He waited a few
minutes, and then beckoning with his hand to some one be-
hind him, he came on to the next ridge, and other Indian
334 KANSAS IN THE SIXTIES
came on to the ridge he had left. There was another pause ;
then the two moved up and a third came in sight. They
came up slowly in this way till at last a group of a dozen
came in sight, and with a glass it could be seen that there
were two persons on one of the ponies. These were the
women. The Indians brought them to within about two
hundred yards of the camp, where they slid off the ponies,
and Romeo, the interpreter, who had met the Indians there,
told the women to come in. They came down the hill cling-
ing to each other, as though determined not to be separated
whatever might occur. I met them at the foot of the hill,
and taking the elder lady by the hand asked if she was Mrs.
Morgan. She said she was, and introduced the other, Miss
White. She then asked, " Are we free now? " I told her
they were, and she asked, ' ' Where is my husband ? ' ' I
told her he was at Hays and recovering from his wounds.
Next question : ' ' Where is my brother ? ' ' I told her he was
in camp, but did not tell her that we had to put him under
guard to keep him. from marring all by shooting the first
Indian he saw. Miss White asked no questions about her
people. She knew they were all dead before she was carried
away. Ouster had an " A " tent, which he brought along
for headquarters, and this was turned over to the women.
At the retreat that night, while the women stood in front
" Home, Sweet Home." The command marched the next
of their tent to see the guard mounted, the band played
morning for the rendezvous on the Washita. It was a couple
of days' march, but when the end came there was coffee, ba-
con, hard bread, and canned goods. Any one of them was
a feast for a king. From Washita to Supply, Supply to
Dodge, Dodge to Hays, where the women were sent home to
Minneapolis, and the Nineteenth was mustered out of the
service. The Indian prisoners were sent to Sill, and soon
after the Cheyennes reported there and went on to their
reservation. . . .
The expedition resulted in forcing the Kiowas, Coman-
ches, Cheyennes, and Arapahoes onto their reservations, and
since then the frontier settlements of Kansas have been
practically free from the depredations of Indians.
The campaign was a most arduous one, prosecuted with-
out adequate camp equipage, in the midst of winter, and
much of the time with an exhausted commissariat. The
CAMPAIGN OP 1868-69 335
regiments of Kansas have glorified our State on a hundred
battlefields, but none served her more faithfully or endured
more in her cause than the NINETEENTH KANSAS CAVALRY.
The regiment, after securing the captive girls, re-
turned to Fort Hays, and was paid off and mustered
out of service on April 18, 1869.
The captives were sent to their homes on the Solo-
mon and Republican rivers, and the Indians ever after-
wards remained on their reservations, and are now
quiet citizens of the United States. But as tribes they
died hard. They fought to kill, and people on the
frontier were often their victims.
THE MISTAKEN POLICY OF THE GOVERNMENT
Had the Government, at an early date, adopted a
just and firm Indian policy and adhered to it, the soil
of every township of land west of the Appalachian
Range would not have been saturated with human
blood. But that was not done. The humanitarians,
who knew nothing about the real character of the wild
Indians, were going to manage them by moral suasion,
and with beautiful flowers, as some ladies reclaim mur-
derers when on trial for their lives.
That sentiment took the Indian Bureau from the
War Department, where it belonged, and placed it in
the Interior Department, where it soon became a play-
thing for boss politicians and thieving Indian agents.
Then the War Department was held responsible for
the conduct of the Indians, while the Interior Depart-
ment, through its agents, was supplying them with
munitions of war, and encouraging them in deeds of
atrocity.
That was the condition of things in Central and
Western Kansas from the Spring of 1864 to 1869, when
the savage barbarians were rounded up on the Wash-
ita and placed on their reservations. Had this been
done at the outbreak of hostilities in 1864, the lives
and property of many of our frontier people would
336 KANSAS IN THE SIXTIES
have been saved ; but public sentiment in the East was
against it, and the bloody work was allowed to go on
until it could no longer be endured.
Our Indian troubles having thus been brought to a
close and permanent peace assured, Central and West-
ern Kansas soon became a paradise for the home-seek-
ers. But few of the well-to-do farmers and others now
residing in that lovely country, have even a remote idea
of the trials and tribulations endured by the pioneer
settlers. Many of them had been soldiers in the Civil
War, and when they formed in line on the frontier,
they were there to stay. Such men deserve good
homes.
CHAPTER XXIV
BBVIEW — PERSONAL
HAVING served the State and General Govern-
ment with fidelity and shared to the extent of my
ability in protecting the lives and property of our citi-
zens, I returned home at the close of eight years of
strenuous effort, conscious of having done my duty.
The record I left to my successors was clean, and our
proud young State stood out in bold relief among the
States of the Union, with every sail spread to the
breeze.
Not a blot, not a blemish marred the new Dread-
nought of the West. Not a doubt was entertained con-
cerning her seaworthiness nor her destination. It
may be true that her pathway has at times been ob-
structed with rubbish, which caused a slight deviation
from her true course, but so far she has been able to
round such rubbish and push resolutely forward with
the flag of the Union flying from the topmast.
That the launching and the piloting of this steel-
clad structure beyond the breakers, were done amid
stormy weather, goes without saying. Those who were
present and all who read, know of the obstacles with
which Kansas had to contend in early days. Until the
close of the Civil War every citizen found it necessary
to sleep on his arms ; and until the close of the Indian
wars, the frontier settlers stood in battle array to pro-
tect their lives and property against well-equipped
barbarians, who were under the protecting care of of-
ficials who should have been sent to the Dry Tortugas.
My predecessors, Governors Robinson and Carney,
were kept busy trying to protect the south and east
337
338 KANSAS IN THE SIXTIES
borders of Kansas against the thieves, robbers, and
murderers, who prowled among the woods and hills of
Western Missouri during the Civil War, and hence
they had little time to devote to the general interests
of the State. In fact, the young men of the State were
mostly in the army, and there was not much that could
be done by the Legislature and the State officers while
the War was raging.
My first year as Governor was mostly devoted to
the reorganization of Kansas regiments in the field,
the protection of the border, and the mustering out of
troops whose terms of service had expired. But when
the War of the Rebellion ceased in the Spring of 1865,
I set about to lay the foundation for our State Gov-
ernment and State institutions.
As yet, nothing had been done, except by the Leg-
islature, in locating some of the important State in-
stitutions. The credit of the State was at a low ebb,
and the taxable property at that time was such as to
require the State to make haste slowly. But we
started in and plodded along as best we could; and
when I left the office, the east wing of the Capitol was
completed, and all our important State institutions
were in successful operation.
A heavy immigration was pouring into the State;
new homes and new fields were springing up on every
hand; vast herds of domestic animals roamed the
prairies; railroads and telegraph lines were pushing
their way westward; and the wheels of industry were
moving with a steadiness of purpose that encouraged
everybody to be up and doing.
But from what I have said it must not be assumed
that the State authorities, in putting the State Gov-
ernment in operation, had smooth sailing at all times.
Often we were sharply criticised, and sometimes our
pathway would be deliberately obstructed by design-
ing persons for selfish purposes. The men who were
plotting to absorb the lands in Indian reservations,
REVIEW — PERSON ALi 339
and companies that were scheming to have the State
endorse their bonds in violation of our Constitution,
sometimes controlled newspapers, and they would often
level their batteries at those who stood in their way.
For a while one of the leading dailies of the State
was under the control of these land-grabbers and
bridge-builders. They employed as the editor of their
paper one of the most brilliant writers in the West.
In due time he was instructed to open fire on me, and
if possible prevent my renomination as the Republi-
can candidate for Governor.
For several months, while my time was almost en-
tirely consumed on the western frontier in helping to
protect the settlers and overland trains and travel,
this paper kept up an incessant fire. I paid no atten-
tion to it, but remained at my post of duty. When the
Convention assembled in the Fall I was unanimously
renominated, and subsequently elected for a second
term by an overwhelming majority.
That had a sort of soothing effect on the policy of
the paper, and thenceforward the editor was true to
himself. Years afterwards, when old scores had been
settled and forgotten, this same editor, who in other
days had been instructed to write and publish things
that he did not personally endorse, made the amende
honorable in a communication published in The Kan-
sas City Times, which in part reads as follows :
In January, 1865, Samuel J. Crawford, the third Gov-
ernor of Kansas, was inaugurated. The rainbow of peace
was just forming across the perturbed and storm-swept
heavens as the fighting Governor of young, heroic, ' bleeding
Kansas ' assumed executive authority. ... To Kansas
more than any other Northern State peace was desirable.
Her eleven years' history had been years of contention, of
blood, of tumult, and ceaseless warring and strife. The
people, wearied of dissension, desired an era of peace and
prosperity. Nothing had been done to develop the State.
Virgin prairies lay untilled and untouched, and the rich
and alluvial soil was unvexed with the tickling hoe, and un-
340 KANSAS IN THE SIXTIES
burdened with the wealth that honest husbandry brings.
The golden harvest was only a promise of the future. There
was propriety in allowing the soldier to lead in the new era
of industrial development, where
" Peace hath her victories no less renowned than war."
Governor Crawford set himself right about adapting
the State to the changed order of things. He saw at once
that the bugle blast was no more to be heard echoing along
our valleys; that the music of harvest machinery must take
the place of the call to arms ; that in place of the steady
tramp of the soldiery would come the immigrant's covered
wagon and the moving car. No railroads had yet been built,
but the energy of the people that could raise and equip such
troops and in such countless multitudes north and south
would soon call into being the multiplied riches of the New
West. The railroads, manufacturing enterprises, the build-
ing of schools and colleges and public institutions could find
no more intelligent and practical mind than that of Governor
Crawford to aid in the great work of stimulating the ma-
terial and educational growth of the State. His administra-
tion must have been fortunate and successful, for he was the
first Governor to be reflected, and no four years in the history
of the State have been quite so prosperous in great business
enterprises, in railway construction, in the opening of farms,
the building of towns, the establishment of State institu-
tions, and the construction of public buildings. And yet
the State was not in a condition of profound peace during
this period of prosperity. The scalping knife of the In-
dian got in its fine artistic and tonsorial work on the west-
ern borders. The frontier settlements were constantly har-
assed by the plains Indians, and the unprotected border
required the services in person of so high a military officer
as Major General Hancock. The atrocities committed by the
Indians upon Kansas settlers scarcely find a parallel in the
history of the country. The appeals of the plainsmen were
poured into ears not deaf, and found a lodgment in a heart
not unsympathetic, but brave as that of Richard Coeur de
Lion.
Governor Crawford resigned his Governorship and again
took the saddle, placing himself at the head of that gallant
and splendidly equipped regiment, the Nineteenth Cavalry.
REVIEW — PERSONAL 841
Colonel Crawford led the expedition against the Indians
in the Fall of 1868, and drove the combined forces of Chey-
ennes, Comanches, Kiowas, and Arapahoes through the west-
ern portion of the Indian Territory, over four hundred miles
down into Northwestern Texas. It took all Fall and the entire
Winter to accomplish the objects of the campaign; but so
thoroughly was the job done that the Indians were glad to
surrender all prisoners in their hands, and enter into treaties
to forever maintain peace with the whites. Since then the
western settlements have not been harmed by these maraud-
ers and freebooters of the plains. The joy of the prisoners
in being released and restored once more to their friends
can only be imagined. The fruits of the great expedition
were imperishable.
This communication shows the manly spirit that
actuated the early settlers of Kansas. In the heat of
political passion, and sometimes for selfish purposes,
one would do or say, of others, things that would not
bear the light of truth ; but generally such persons had
the manly courage to make amends. Especially was
this true of the newspapers whose editors did their
full share in helping to mould and shape the character
of our progressive young State.
Generally speaking, I had the undivided support
of the press of Kansas, which enabled me to open a
road through the wilderness and place the State on a
solid basis. With Rebels, guerillas, and savage bar-
barians on three sides, and an empty treasury at the
capital, I took the oath of office, and soon learned that
facing an enemy on the field of battle, in comparison
to what then confronted me, was mere child's play.
Nevertheless, I was there face to face with condi-
tions which had to L; met, and I met them. How well,
the record will show. It was a trying ordeal, but I
mastered the situation ; and in all I did, I trust the end
justified the means. That I made mistakes goes with-
out saying. He who makes no mistakes seldom reaches
his objective point in life.
PART THIRD
PART THIRD
CHAPTER XXV
PEACE AND POLITICS
TRIUMPH OF BOODLEES IN ELECTING TJ. S. SENATOR - DE-
FEAT OF POMEROY AND ELECTION OF SENATOR IN-
GALLS.
HE wild tribes having been driven from the State,
and permanent peace established, I sheathed my
sword and returned to the peaceful pursuits of life.
Our proud young Commonwealth was then under full
sail, four-square to the wind, with my successor, a
man of sterling worth, at the wheel. In the Fall of
1869, I removed to the flourishing little city of Em-
poria and engaged in the real-estate business, which
afforded the outdoor exercise essential to my health
at that time.
When I laid aside the cares and responsibilities of
official life, under which I had been laboring for eight
years, and freed myself from the turmoil and strife in-
cident to such life, I did so with the settled purpose
of having nothing more to do with politics or war.
But my friends in different parts of the State decided
otherwise and, before I was aware of the fact, had my
name at the head of a number of newspapers as a can-
didate for the U. S. Senate.
The term of service of the Hon. E. G. Ross would
expire on the fourth of March, 1871, and they desired
to elect me in his stead. At the Fall convention pre-
345
346 KANSAS IN THE SIXTIES
ceding the Senatorial election, many of the candidates
nominated were instructed to vote for me, and many
others voluntarily pledged themselves to do so. Under
these circumstances I did not feel at liberty to nega-
tive their efforts.
When the Legislature assembled at Topeka in Jan-
uary, 1871, I was there, and a majority of the mem-
bers, the first week of the session, gave me assurance
of their support. My friends organized the House by
electing the Hon. B. F. Simpson of Miami, as Speaker,
and they were also in the majority in the Senate when
the Legislature convened. But unfortunately — by
reason of a law of Congress, which, whether so in-
tended or not, gave boodlers time to get in their work
— the two Houses could not vote for a Senator until
the second Tuesday after they convened.
TRIUMPH OF BOODLERS IN ELECTING U. S. SENATOR
At the end of the first week of the session of 1871,
the boodlers made their appearance in Topeka with a
candidate who was said to have plenty of money, and
the nefarious work of bribing the members began.
Day by day, and at night as well, members who had
been instructed and elected to support other men for
the Senate were rounded up, purchased and branded,
until a majority was secured who were willing to be-
tray their constituents and go for all time with the
double crime of perjury and bribery stamped on their
character.
They elected their man, who in due time appeared
in the Senate at Washington, and subsequently re-
signed to avoid being expelled by that honorable body.
The honorable gentlemen who sold their votes, be-
trayed their constituents, and committed perjury,
served out their terms in the Legislature, and then
hied themselves away to their homes to be again
branded as political lepers.
This was the first Senatorial election in Kansas
PEACE AND POLITICS 347
where money was openly and notoriously used in the
bribing of members, and that it was so used, the Re-
port of U. S. Senator 0. P. Morton, Chairman of the
Senate Committee on Elections, as made to that hon-
orable body, gives ample proof.
But it should not be assumed that the Legislature
of 1871, or even a majority of that body, was corrupt.
Some of the members who supported the briber, no
doubt, were influenced by local considerations; while
the members who did not vote for him were men true
to the State and true to their constituents. To those
members who repelled the overtures of the political
pirates, the State owes a debt of everlasting gratitude.
They stood like heroes and fought against the traitors
that were tarnishing the fair name of the State.
To say that the conduct of the majority of that
Legislature in electing a briber to the United States
Senate was treason to the State, would be stating the
case mildly. It was treason and a cowardly attempt
to assassinate the State Government at the same time.
Far better would it have been had they plunged the
dagger into the heart of the Governor and all the State
officers. Their removal would not have affected the
stability of the State Government, because they could
have been replaced ; but the bribery of the law-makers
strikes directly at the foundation of free government.
DEFEAT OF POMEBOY AND ELECTION OF SENATOR INGALL8
The example set by that Legislature did more to
corrupt the politics of Kansas and demoralize future
Legislatures than all things else combined. It paved
the way for the Legislature of 1873 to venture on a
similar expedition. A United States Senator was to
be elected, and one of the candidates — in his zeal to
secure the coveted prize — resorted to dark ways and
vain tricks, the same as had been done by the success-
ful aspirant before the Legislature of 1871.
The difference between these two would-be states-
348 KANSAS IN THE SIXTIES
men and their methods, was slight ; but still there was
a difference. The one regarded the members of the
Legislature as so many cattle to be purchased in the
open market, branded and yoked up for his personal
use, as had been his custom when freighting across the
plains; while the other looked upon them as so many
sheep in the shambles, from which he could make his
choice, pay his money, and go on his way rejoicing.
But in this he was woefully mistaken. He bought
just one member too many — a State Senator who was
seeking proof of the charges afloat in Topeka to the
effect that Senator Pomeroy was bribing the members.
That Senator (A. M. York) visited him at his hotel
at the dead hour of midnight and received an offer of
seven thousand dollars in money for his vote and sup-
port. This Senator York accepted, and the following
day when the two Houses were assembled in joint
session to elect a U. S. Senator, Mr. York arose in his
place and exhibiting the money he had received, made
a full statement of how and from whom it was
obtained.
The members who were in readiness to vote for
Mr. Pomeroy, were suddenly plunged into a gulf of
dark despair. Some of them were pale as ghosts with
great drops of sweat standing out on their faces, which
showed guilt of the deepest dye. For a while they
were dumbfounded and, no doubt, could see them-
selves looking through the bars; but gradually the
boodlers recovered, and most of them were able to
articulate when their names were called.
On the other hand the members who were opposed
to the man who was trying to debauch the Legislature
and secure his election to the U. S. Senate by bribery,
were elated and hopeful for the future. Without ad-
journing, they immediately counselled among them-
selves and submitted the name of Mr. Ingalls, a bril-
liant young lawyer of Atchison, to the joint session, as
a man worthy and well qualified to represent the State
PEACE AND POLITICS 349
in the U. S. Senate. " Vote, vote, vote," was heard
on all sides, and soon the voting began.
Mr. Pomeroy, whose supporters were in the ma-
jority when the two Houses met in joint session that
day, received just one vote; while Mr. Ingalls, who
had not previously been a candidate, received all the
other votes — except a few scattering Democratic
votes — and was elected. This was a black eye for the
boodlers; but gradually they began to show signs of
life. Occasionally they have gotten in their nefarious
work, which, generally speaking, has resulted in their
own injury.
CHAPTER XXVI
PERILS OF THE TAEIFF POLICY
AFTER the Civil War many of the Union soldiers
and others came West to grow up with the coun-
try. Kansas, having free homes to offer, received per-
haps her full share of such immigrants. They pushed
westward to the frontier, and rapidly the vast prairies
were converted into beautiful farms interspersed with
flourishing towns and cities. The railroads kept pace
with the settlements, and sometimes went in advance.
In fact, all the industries pertaining to a newly settled
country were thriving, and the people were happy and
prosperous.
On the morning of September 23, 1873, the wires
flashed the report that the banks of New York were
closing in a panic which would spread over the coun-
try. Soon the report was confirmed, and the panic was
on. It was the first since the War and the people gen-
erally were unprepared for it.
I was one of the early victims. Everything I had
accumulated was swept away as if by a cyclone, and
the same was true of others no better prepared for a
panic than myself. We all faced the storm as best we
could, selling property at less than half its value and
paying our debts as far as the money would go.
I even sold my home, which was exempt under the
law, and distributed the money pro rata among my
creditors, still leaving an unpaid balance of several
thousand dollars, all of which, principal and interest,
I subsequently paid dollar for dollar.
It was an ordeal through which a sensitive person
350
TARIFF POLICY 351
can pass only once in a lifetime. In fact many who
were hard hit by the panic of 1873 did not get through.
Some died, and others became insane.
This panic followed swiftly on the heels of an Act
of Congress which prohibited the free coinage of sil-
ver, and reduced the value of the silver dollar to fifty
cents. At that time the Western States and Terri-
tories produced over one-half of the silver of the
world, and the Act of Congress was a terrific blow to
the silver producers. It reduced the silver to a com-
modity; and that, with a carefully worded tariff, en-
abled the grafters, trusts, and combines to get in their
work and lay the foundation for a complete monopoly
of the leading industries of the country. The policy
that produced that panic was the beginning of the end.
The demonetization of silver, however, — which, for
the time being, fell with crushing weight on the silver-
producing States, and disturbed business arrange-
ments in other parts of the country — was but a drop
in the ocean as compared with what followed. The
Government then had but recently emerged from a gi-
gantic war, which rendered a high tariff (for revenue)
essential ; but that war tariff, high as it had been, was
being gradually reduced, and at the same time the pub-
lic debt was also being paid off.
But the grafters, money-changers, and gold-gam-
blers decided upon a change ; a new order of things ; a
get-rich-quick policy, which will lead God knows where.
The old policy of a tariff for revenue, with incidental
protection, was speedily thrown to the winds and a
high protective tariff substituted.
The arguments offered in support of this radical
change were:
First: To protect and build up home industries,
scattered broadcast among the people, where they were
most needed.
Second: To shut out foreign competition and fur-
nish a home market for American products.
Third: To make the United States a world power,
sailing over the seas with chips on both shoulders.
How well the tariff has done its work, the smoke-
less chimneys of small factories all over the country
attest. The fabulous prices paid by the farmers for
farm implements, wire, lumber, and other tariff-pro-
tected articles bear witness to the fallacy of a high
protective tariff. The tariff-protected infant industry
of Pennsylvania, commonly called the Steel Trust,
which has absorbed or crushed rival plants and holds
a monopoly on the iron and steel required by the rail-
roads and by the Government in the building of battle-
ships, ought to be sufficient to satisfy any intelligent
man as to the injustice of a prohibitive tariff.
Every dollar of money acquired by the Govern-
ment, through the medium of a tariff, comes out of the
pockets of the American people. The importer simply
adds the duty to the thing imported and the consumer
pays it. In other words, it is an indirect tax of at least
five hundred million dollars annually, more than is
necessary and more than the American people are able
to pay. It is an imposition that should not be possible
under a republican form of government. And if it is
not speedily corrected by Congress, the American vot-
ers will probably correct Congress.
Most of our tariff laws enacted since 1873 have
been in all respects bad; but the last, known as the
11 Aldrich Bill," should have been entitled a Bill to
confiscate the property of the many for the benefit of
the few.
CHAPTEE XXVII
STATE CLAIMS AND BAILEOAD GRANTS APPOINTED STATE
AGENT AT WASHINGTON
AFTER the panic of 1873, business gradually ad-
justed itself to changed conditions, leaving the
trail strewn with wreckage that took years to remove.
But all who had not been permanently disabled, buckled
on their armor and renewed the battle.
The bottom having dropped out of the work in
which I was engaged, I removed to Topeka in 1875
and soon thereafter was employed by Governor Os-
born to prosecute certain claims of the State against
the United States for money due the State on account
of military expenditures ; money due on account of the
sale of public lands within the State ; and also a claim
for indemnity school lands granted by Congress, but
withheld by the Interior Department under a misinter-
pretation of the law.
To these matters I applied myself diligently and
finally obtained a favorable decision in each case. The
military claims were adjusted by a board of army offi-
cers detailed for the purpose by the Secretary of War.
The claim of the State for five per cent of the sale of
public lands and the claim for indemnity school lands,
were adjusted in the Interior and Treasury depart-
ments, under an opinion from the Department of Jus-
tice, defining the meaning, intent, and purpose of the
laws under which the State was acting.
As a result of this work I recovered for the State,
school lands and moneys as follows :
353
354 KANSAS IN THE SIXTIES
School lands secured 276,376 Acres
Five-per-cent fund secured .... $405,906.00
Military fund secured 369,338.00
Direct Tax fund secured 71,743.00
Total moneys received .... $841,587.00
APPOINTED STATE AGENT AT WASHINGTON
In addition to this work I was authorized by an act
of the State Legislature, approved March 6, 1883, to
secure an adjustment of railroad land grants within
the State as follows :
That the Hon. S. J. Crawford, State Agent, be and is
hereby authorized and empowered to represent the State of
Kansas before the Executive Departments of the Government
at Washington, and before such committees of Congress
as may be necessary in all matters pertaining to grants of
land made by Congress to and in the construction of rail-
roads within the State of Kansas. And that in the execu-
tion of his authority under this act he shall investigate and
ascertain the amount of land granted by Congress for the
benefit of railroads in Kansas, and the amount to which each
of said railroad companies was or is entitled as indemnity.
Also the amount withdrawn, transferred, or set apart for such
purposes, and whether in the adjudication of such grants
the just rights of the State or of citizens thereof have been
impaired. The said agent is hereby authorized to adopt such
measures and take such action in the premises, either by
petition, application, motion, or otherwise, as may be neces-
sary, to the end that the interests of the State and of citizens
thereof may be secured and protected.
In pursuance of this authority and in obedience to
its requirements, I proceeded at once to reconnoitre
the situation and ascertain the position and strength
of the opposing forces.
Fortunately, I found at the head of the Interior
Department an honest man, the Hon. Henry M. Teller,
to whom I presented an outline of the matters en-
trusted to my care by the State. After securing such
STATE AGENT AT WASHINGTON 355
data as were of record only in that Department, I pre-
pared and submitted to the Honorable Secretary briefs
and arguments covering all important questions relat-
ing to railroad land-grants in Kansas, and their ad-
justment by the Department of the Interior.
In 1862, Congress made a grant of the odd-num-
bered sections of public land within twenty miles of
the line of a road (the Union Pacific and its branches)
to be constructed from the Missouri River westward
over the mountains to the Pacific Ocean. That grant,
with other franchises, was exceedingly liberal, but it
opened a trunk line for travel and transportation
across the continent, and proved to be of incalculable
benefit to the Government and the Western States and
Territories.
In 1863, grants of land were made to the State of
Kansas, of ten sections (odd-numbered) per mile on
each side of certain roads to be constructed within the
State. These grants were also reasonable and of great
value to the State and country. Had Congress ad-
hered to this policy, which insured the building of the
roads and at the same time enhanced the value of the
even-numbered sections with in the limits of the
grants, all concerned would have been benefited.
But Congress was not satisfied to let well-enough
alone. Its previous grants in disposing of a part of
the public lands for the public good, had proved so sat-
isfactory and beneficial to the country that it resolved
to go into the land-granting business on a large scale.
In 1866, presuming upon the generosity of the peo-
ple, Congress made three grants : one to the Southern
Pacific road from El Paso to California ; one to the At-
lantic and Pacific through New Mexico and Arizona;
and one to the Northern Pacific. These grants em-
braced all the odd-numbered sections of public lands
within forty miles on each side of the roads respec-
tively. These grants were equivalent to a solid belt of
land 120 miles wide and about 1500 miles long. Need
356 KANSAS IN THE SIXTIES
anybody wonder how it was possible for the presidents
of two of these roads to leave, each at his death, an es-
tate valued at seventy million dollars?
Had these grants been reduced one-half, the roads
would have been built, as were the Union Pacific and
its branches. But these are matters that belong to the
past ; and perhaps it is best to * ' let the dead Past bury
its dead."
The grants of land to the State for the benefit of
Kansas roads were moderate, and the lands granted
were earned by the beneficiary companies. But some
of the companies were not satisfied with the lands
granted, and to which they were lawfully entitled. Two
of the companies (the Kansas Pacific and the Mis-
souri, Kansas, and Texas) set up claims to lands occu-
pied by bona fide settlers when their grants were made
by Congress, and for some unknown reason the Gen-
eral Land Office was ruling and deciding against the
settlers.
The grant for the benefit of the Atchison, Topeka
and Santa Fe road was of every odd-numbered section
of land within ten miles of the line, from Atchison to
the west line of the State, and where any of such sec-
tions or parts thereof had been sold or otherwise dis-
posed of, then, in lieu of the lands so sold or disposed
of, the company was authorized to select other lands
within an additional or second ten-mile limit.
From Atchison along the line of the road to Flor-
ence, a distance of one hundred and fifty miles, most
of the lands within the limits of the grant had been
sold to settlers or were occupied by Indians. So it be-
came necessary for the company to select indemnity
lands. From Florence to the west line of the State, a
distance of about two hundred and sixty miles, the
lands within the grant were, generally speaking, un-
occupied and the grant to that extent was satisfied;
but for the lands lost to the grant, east of Florence,
lieu lands were selected in the second ten-mile limit
.west from that point.
STATE AGENT AT WASHINGTON 357
The State and people of Kansas were deeply in-
terested in having the grants to Kansas roads properly
adjusted. It was the duty of the State to protect its
citizens in their lawful rights. The railroads were
amply able to protect themselves, their right to lands
granted being attached the moment their lines of road
were definitely located, and maps thereof approved by
the Secretary of the Interior and filed in the General
Land Office.
Until this was done, the lands within the limits of
the grants, respectively, were subject to the settlement
rights of the people, the same as other public lands.
These and all other questions relating to land grants
and their administration by the Executive Department
had been decided by the Supreme Court, and the grant-
ing acts so interpreted were plain and clear.
Within the limits of the grant to the Kansas Pacific
road and also to the Santa Fe and the Missouri, Kan-
sas and Texas, thousands of bona fide settlers had
selected and filed upon homesteads prior to the definite
location of said roads. Nevertheless, under the rul-
ings and practice of the G-eneral Land Office, their fil-
ings, generally speaking, were cancelled and their
homesteads given to the railroads. Besides, vast
quantities of public land to which the settlers were en-
titled under the homestead and preemption laws were
being certified to the railroad companies without the
shadow of authority of law.
To check these outrageous proceedings and have
restored to market the public lands which had been
erroneously withdrawn and certified to the railroad
companies, the Legislature passed the act, above
quoted, authorizing me to secure an adjustment of all
railroad grants within the State. That, of course,
meant a fight to the finish. The railroad attorneys,
able and conscious of their power, presented a bold
front and seemed anxious for the fray. I opened the
battle with the briefs mentioned above which soon
brought the old guard to their feet with a loud call for
358 KANSAS IN THE SIXTIES
help. I followed this with a general onslaught, and
drove the gentlemen across the ' ' bridge of sighs. ' '
Nothing on either side was overlooked or left un-
done. Briefs and arguments followed each other in
rapid succession, until, finally, the opposing counsel
were driven from the field, and sought shelter behind
a brush-heap fortification known in the Department as
res judicata. From this untenable position they were
speedily dislodged and driven to the necessity of
throwing themselves upon the mercy of the court. The
Department then proceeded to adjust the grants and,
after giving the railroad companies the benefit of
every doubt, compelled them to relinquish their claim
to an amount exceeding 900,000 acres situated along
the lines of the Kansas Pacific and the Atchison, To-
peka, and Santa Fe roads.
The questions involving the right and title to lands
within the limits of the Kansas Pacific grant dragged
their weary length around in the Interior Department
for two years and more. They were argued and re-
argued in the General Land Office and also before the
Honorable Secretary of the Interior, the Attorney
General, and Committees of Congress.
At some of these hearings the Honorable Charles
Francis Adams, president of the Union Pacific of which
the Kansas Pacific was a branch, was present and ex-
pressed himself as astonished at the manner in which
that grant had been administered. The facts then and
previously presented to the Department were new to
him ; and no doubt he used his influence thereafter to
have the grant properly adjusted, in so far as the
previous wrongdoing could be remedied.
The great obstacle in the way of procuring an hon-
est administration of the law relating to land grants
in those days, was the tremendous power and influence
of the railroad companies. They used that power in
furtherance of their schemes wherever it would prove
most effective. They had wheels within wheels -
skilfully arranged — so that the motive power on Cap-
STATE AGENT AT WASHINGTON 359
itol Hill (the Kailroad and Public Land Committees
in the two Houses) could set even the cogs in the rail-
road divisions of the Interior Department a-humming.
Some of the cogs were extremely biassed ; and it
usually so happened that when their services were no
longer required by the Government, they would re-
tire and immediately find themselves in the employ of
the railroad company whose claims had been most lib-
erally adjusted. Nor was this custom confined exclu-
sively to law clerks and chiefs of divisions. Higher of-
ficials have been known to resign and enter the service
of railroad companies whose land-grants had been ad-
justed to their satisfaction.
But this does not apply to Henry M. Teller, Secre-
tary of the Interior, nor to N. C. McFarland and W. A.
J. Sparks, Commissioners of the General Land Office
while the Kansas grants were being adjusted. These
officials did their duty to the extent of their ability, and
the same was true of Secretary Lamar, who stood like
a lion in the pathway of evil-doers, but was without
experience in the adjustment of land grants.
However, he applied himself diligently, and would
have adjusted all land grants according to law, had he
been allowed to remain at the head of the department.
But that was not to be. He could do less harm to land
pirates elsewhere ; so an influence was brought to bear
on President Cleveland, and he was transferred to the
Supreme Bench. What followed, the record shows.
Suffice to say that the railroads received all the land
to which they were entitled under the law.
CHAPTEE XXVIII
GENERAL PRACTICE
RECOVERY OP LANDS AND MONEYS FOR THE INDIANS —
QUAPAW TREATIES AND GOVERNMENTAL MISMANAGE-
MENT.
HAVING completed the work for which I was em-
ployed by the State, and also having secured a
fair adjustment of railroad land-grants in Kansas, I
turned my attention to the general practice of the law
in Washington City. In the course of this practice, I
prosecuted many cases involving the rights of settlers
to their homes under the homestead and preemption
laws.
I was also employed by many of the Indian tribes
and nations to secure for them lands and moneys to
which they were entitled under their respective treaties
and laws of Congress. Some of these cases were of in-
terest to the public as well as to the Indians, and on
that account I deem it worth while to make mention of
them specially.
In pursuance of treaties dating back for many
years, most of the tribes and nations whom I repre-
sented had been removed from State to State until
they were finally located in Kansas and the Indian
Territory.
Prior to their removal westward, the country west
of the Mississippi Eiver and extending northward
from the Eed Eiver of the South to the British posses-
sions, was occupied from time immemorial by the so-
called wild tribes and plains Indians: namely, The
Quapaws, Caddos, Wichitas, Osages, Cheyennes, Ara-
360
GENERAL PRACTICE 361
pahoes, Apaches, Comanches, Kiowas, Kansas or
Kaws, Pawnees, Sioux, and Chippewas.
These Indians roamed the plains, and subsisted
mainly on buffalo meat and other wild game. Finally,
suitable tracts of land, or reservations as they were
called, were set apart by treaty stipulations to each of
said tribes, leaving room for their brethren from east
of the Mississippi.
In the early part of the last century, these eastern
tribes began to cross the Mississippi. The Cherokees,
Creeks, Seminoles, Choctaws, and Chickasaws were as-
signed reservations in what is now the State of Ok-
lahoma, and the Delawares, Wyandots, Kickapoos,
lowas, Otos, Potawatamis, Shawnees, Ottawas, Sac and
Foxes, Peorias, Miamis, and New York Indians, were
located on reservations which fell within the Territory
of Kansas.
These tribes so located in Kansas, together with
the aborigines subsequently ceded their lands to the
United States and removed to Oklahoma, where, as
with the tribes already there, lands were allotted in
severalty to the individual Indians.
In treating with the various tribes east of the Mis-
sissippi for the purpose of having them remove west,
the Government was exceedingly liberal in its promises
of lands, money, and other property ; and the same was
true in its dealings with the wild tribes in order to get
them to settle down on the reservations assigned them.
"When these liberal promises and extensive grants
were made, the lands embraced in the reservations
were regarded as of little value except for hunting pur-
poses. But in this the Government was mistaken. The
lands in most of the reservations subsequently proved
to be exceedingly valuable for agricultural, mineral,
and grazing purposes. So much so that it became al-
most impossible for the Government to protect the In-
dians in their lawful rights as guaranteed by treaty
stipulations.
362 KANSAS IN THE SIXTIES
RECOVERY OF LANDS AND MONEYS FOR THE INDIANS
To establish their rights and recover vast tracts of
land which had virtually been confiscated, the leading
tribes employed counsel to represent them in the de-
partments and before the courts and committees of
Congress. I was employed by the eastern Cherokees,
Creeks, Seminoles, Choctaws, Chickasaws, Quapaws,
Cheyennes, and Arapahoes.
For the eastern Cherokees, with the assistance of
co-counsel, we obtained a decision from the Supreme
court authorizing the members of that band to share
in the allotment of the tribal lands in the Indian Terri-
tory, which insured each one a valuable home.
For the Creeks, we recovered two million, two hun-
dred and eighty thousand dollars in lieu of lands pre-
viously taken by the Government to be opened to
settlement in Western Oklahoma; also six hundred
thousand dollars for the loyal Creeks on account of
property taken or destroyed by the enemy during the
Civil War.
For the Seminoles, John F. Brown and I recovered
one million, nine hundred and twelve thousand dollars
for lands appropriated by the Government for white
settlement in Western Oklahoma; also one hundred
and eighty-seven thousand dollars for property lost,
for which the Government was responsible. Brown
was Governor of that nation, and a man among men.
For the Choctaws and Chickasaws, Captain J. S.
Stanley and others, with my assistance, secured two
million, nine hundred and ninety-two thousand dollars
in payment for lands appropriated by the Government
and given to other Indians.
For the Cheyennes and Arapahoes, Matt. G. Eey-
nolds and I, assisted by Colonels Dyer and Miles, re-
covered one million, five hundred thousand dollars and
also an additional allotment of eighty acres for each
member of the two tribes, on account of a reservation
in Northern Oklahoma which the Government desired
for white settlement.
GENERAL PRACTICE 363
For the Quapaws, Mr. A. "W. Abrams, Secretary of
the National Council, and I, did more. This tribe or
nation, originally owned and occupied a large reserva-
tion of valuable lands in what is now the State of Ar-
kansas. These lands were theirs by right of discovery,
and had been occupied from time immemorial.
By treaty, proclaimed January 5, 1818, the tribe
ceded and conveyed to the United States for a nominal
sum, all their lands west of the Mississippi River,
except a reservation south of the Arkansas Eiver,
embracing about two million acres ; and by treaty, pro-
claimed February 18, 1825, the United States pur-
chased this reservation at less than one cent per acre
to be paid for in goods, chattels, and unfulfilled
promises.
This sharp practice in land-dealing on the part of
the Government, wiped out all right, title, and interest
of the Quapaws in and to their vast reservation in Ar-
kansas, and sent them as paupers and beggars to a
sickly locality on Eed Eiver, where one-fourth of the
tribe died from disease and starvation within a short
period.
The Government, becoming ashamed of its in-
famous treatment of the Quapaws, concluded another
treaty with them on May 13, 1833, from which the fol-
lowing is an extract :
QUAPAW TREATIES AND GOVERNMENTAL MISMANAGEMENT
Whereas, by the treaty between the United States and
the Quapaw Indians, concluded November 15th, 1824, they
ceded to the United States all their lands in the Territory
of Arkansas, and according to which they were " to be con-
centrated and confined to a district of country inhabited by
the Caddo Indians and form a part of said tribe "; and
whereas they did remove according to the stipulations of
said treaty, and settled on the Bayou Treache on the south
side of Red River, on a tract of land given them by the
Caddo Indians, but which was found subject to frequent
inundations on account of the raft on Red River ; and where
their crops were destroyed by the water year after year;
364 KANSAS IN THE SIXTIES
and which also proved to be a very sickly country ; and where
in a short time, nearly one-fourth of their people died; and
whereas they could obtain no other situation from the Cad-
dos and they refused to incorporate them and receive them
as a constituent part of their tribe as contemplated by their
treaty with the United States ; and as they saw no alternative
but to perish if they continued there, or to return to their
old residence on the Arkansas, they therefore chose the lat-
ter; and whereas they now find themselves very unhappily
situated in consequence of having their little improvements
taken from them by the settlers of the country; and being
anxious to secure a permanent and peaceable home, the fol-
lowing articles or treaty are agreed upon between the United
States and the Quapaw Indians by John F. Schermerhorn
. . . commissioners of Indian affairs west, and the
chiefs and warriors of said Quapaw Indians, this (13th)
thirteenth day of May, 1833. . . .
Article 1. The Quapaw Indians hereby relinquish and
convey to the United States all their right and title to the
lands given them by the Caddo Indians on the Bayou Treache
of Red River. . . .
Article II. The United States hereby agree to convey to
the Quapaw Indians one hundred and fifty sections of land
west of the State line of Missouri and between the lands of
the Senecas and Sh^wnees, not heretofore assigned to any
other tribe of Indians, the same to be selected and assigned
by the commissioners of Indian affairs West, and which is
expressly designed to be [in] lieu of their location on Red
River, and to carry into effect the treaty of 1824, in order
to provide a permanent home for their nation; the United
States agree to convey the same by patent, to them and their
descendants as long as they shall exist as a nation or con-
tinue to reside thereon, and they also agree to protect them
in their new residence, against all interruption or disturb-
ance from any other tribe or nation of Indians or from any
other person or persons whatever.
From this treaty, as will be observed, the Quapaws
received one hundred and fifty sections of land in ex-
change for lands on Eed River, and were promised
Letters Patent therefor as evidence of their title.
GENERAL PRACTICE 365
Upon these lands they settled, built homes, and would
have lived in ease and comfort, but for their subse-
quent treatment by the Indian Office and its agents.
For years under some of their agents, they were
not allowed to lease their lands for grazing or agricul-
tural purposes, while at the same time their broad
prairies, covered with luxuriant grasses, were leased
by some of their agents, ostensibly, under instructions
from the Indian Office. That may have been true, but
if so, it was unjust. It was an infringement on their
legal rights as owners of the soil, and embarrassed
them seriously, because, as yet, they were just begin-
ning to learn how to farm. They owned the lands by
title in fee simple ; but being wards of the Government
by the right of might, they had to submit to the decree
of their guardian.
But through the dark gloom of half a century, they
finally began to approach the light. There came among
them a young man fresh from the war, who was accus-
tomed to the rattle of musketry and the roar of artil-
lery; and their good judgment told them that they
needed him in their business. They had been buffeted
from pillar to post until it seemed as though they had
no rights that even their guardian was bound to
respect.
They, therefore, pleaded with this young artillery-
man to stay and become one of them. Having Indian
blood in his veins and learning of the wrongs that had
been heaped upon his brethren, he finally yielded to
their solicitations and agreed to stay. He knew it was
an enlistment for another war and a fight to the finish ;
but he took off his coat and said, " Let the battle be-
gin ! ' This was A. W. Abrams, whose section of the
Third Kansas Battery always spoke with no uncertain
sound when the battle was on.
Soon thereafter Mr. Abrams was selected as Secre-
tary of the Tribal Council, and at once began to form
his lines for action, offensive and defensive. Vultures
366 KANSAS IN THE SIXTIES
in human form — officials and others — were perched
on viewpoints in and all round the reservation, ready
to swoop down and gobble up anything and everything
the Indians possessed, ranging from an Indian pony
to the entire body of Quapaw lands.
Not satisfied with a permit from the agent to graze
vast herds of stock in their pastures, free of rental in
so far as the Indians were concerned, a smart set from
without, a secret conspiracy formed whereby it was
proposed to have all the Quapaws abandon their res-
ervation and remove to the Osage country, as they had
previously been tricked into doing when they gave up
their lands in Arkansas and joined the Caddos on Red
River.
A clause in their treaty (above quoted), as will be
observed, provided that the lands should be their prop-
erty so long as they continued to reside thereon.
Therefore, if they could be prevailed upon to move off,
the lands would become vacant, and, hence, the conspir-
ators would have a wide and rich field in which to
operate.
Against this gigantic scheme, Mr. Abrams and the
chief and council set their faces resolutely. They ap-
plied to the Commissioner of Indian Affairs and the
Secretary of the Interior, for authority to allot their
lands to the members of the tribe in severalty, but
their application was rejected. Then they appealed to
Congress for such authority, and there they met with
no better success. Then they came to me for advice
and counsel.
After examining their treaties and satisfying my-
self as to the validity of their title, I gave them an
opinion as to the proper course to pursue. The lands
were held by the tribe in common with a conditional
fee-simple title. The condition, as expressed in the
treaty, was nugatory, because the Indians were not go-
ing to become extinct nor abandon their lands. I was
therefore employed to assist them and Mr. Abrams,
GENERAL PRACTICE 367
and I started in on new lines, such as at first did not
meet the approval of the Commissioner of Indian
Affairs.
We laid our plans, nevertheless, and proceeded to
prepare an Act for the Quapaw Council which provided
for the allotment of their lands in severalty. This Act
was in due time introduced and passed by the Council
and a certified copy thereof filed in the Indian Office at
Washington.
To this the Commissioner (Morgan) objected, and
informed us that the Government would not permit
such a proceeding. The schemers outside, who were
lying in wait for the lands, also objected, and some of
them howled and gnashed their teeth at the proposed
high-handed outrage.
But, all the same, we moved right along in the even
tenor of our way, and the lands were allotted by a
Committee appointed by the Council, and each mem-
ber of the tribe — man, woman, and child — received
240 acres. These allotments were subsequently rati-
fied by Congress, and the Secretary of the Interior
was directed to issue patents accordingly.
Following this, we secured legislation by Congress,
making the Quapaws citizens of the United States and
authorizing them to lease their lands as individuals for
agricultural and mining purposes. And now they are
a happy, contented, prosperous people, notwithstand-
ing the impediments that have been thrown in their
way by Government officials.
Had the Senecas and some of the other tribes in
the Indian Territory made their own allotments, as did
the Quapaws, it would have been better for them and
less expensive for the Government.
CHAPTER XXIX
BACK TO THE FARM FARMING WITH DYNAMITE
" Peace hath her victories no less renowned than war."
OF all the professions and peaceful pursuits of life,
the farm and farming, to me, stand preeminently
in the foreground. I was born and reared on a farm.
I loved the farm and everything pertaining thereto;
the old hills and tall trees ; the rich valleys and swift-
running brooks ; the never-failing springs of clear cold
water, and the orchard laden with delicious fruit ; the
domestic animals grazing in the pastures; fowls of
the farm and birds of the forest; the fields of golden
grain and meadows of new-born hay; the country
school with healthy, rollicking boys and girls ; and the
neighborhood of contented, honest, industrious, truth-
ful people, who were ever ready to lend a helping hand.
All seemed good to me.
In the midst of such surroundings I passed my boy-
hood days, and to me they have always been near and
dear. Hence my desire to return to the farm. It is
the place for the poor man and the man of wealth.
It is the place for the sick man and the man of health.
It is the ideal place to live ; the place to raise boys and
girls and train them to meet conditions in life.
With the facilities afforded by the telephone and
the rural mail carriers, the farm is not now so far
removed from the attraction of gravitation as it used
to be. The farm is not only more healthful and better
for those who are struggling to obtain the necessities
of life, but it is better in a moral way for all concerned.
The tendency to evil-doing in the cities, as every-
368
BACK TO THE FARM 369
body knows, is increasing at a rapid rate. If present
conditions continue, and things are allowed to go on
as they are now going, it is only a question of time
when truth, integrity, and virtue will cease to be car-
dinal principles upon which the home, society, and the
State must stand, if they are to stand.
Already we have macadamized roads leading from
the altar to the divorce courts; and pretty soon the
Legislature may be asked for an appropriation to make
them wider and provide for additional courts to handle
the business. A marriage contract, when properly ex-
ecuted, should be binding as the laws of the Medes and
Persians are said to have been, and any violation
thereof should be met with severe punishment.
On the farm, as a general rule, neither party gives
the other an excuse or grounds for a divorce. When
the young folks get married they settle down and go
hand in hand through life, happy, contented, and pros-
perous. If one or the other imagines that a mistake
has been made, they compare notes; and finding that
their shortcomings average up about even, they agree
to let well-enough alone, and that ends the trouble.
But in cities such cases are rare. Ordinarily, when the
country people get married, they know each other and
understand what they are doing. In fact the weight
of every argument is in favor of the farm as a place
to live and train children.
Then why should not all go to the farm who can?
There industrious, intelligent people may live in com-
fort and provide for old age, rather than wear them-
selves out in the city by daily labor; but when city
folks are no longer able to work, they find themselves
at the mercy of cold humanity. Of course, people on
the farm have to work, but their work is easy as com-
pared with the ordinary work in the city. Yes, why
not go back to the farm and give your boys and girls
an even chance in the race of life.
The poorest and most improvident of the farmers
370 KANSAS IN THE SIXTIES
live better, have better health, see less trouble, and
are happier than the most wealthy of the millionaires
in this or any other country. When settled down to
farming, they take the world easy. In seed-time and
harvest they plough and plant and reap and sow, but
they are seldom too busy to stop work and help a
neighbor in time of need.
While they sleep, their crops are growing, and
their horses, mules, cattle, and other live stock are
comfortably housed or feeding in the pastures;
while the chickens are crowing the farmer is up
and doing. When winter comes he repairs his fences,
does the chores, sits by a good fire, reads, and
waits for the coming of spring. His troubles consist
largely in having to pay trust prices for farm imple-
ments, lumber, barbed wire, and school books. But
even with these outrages heaped upon him by reason
of an unjust tariff and unreasonable taxes, the farmer
is happier and better contented than any of the people
who are reaping a harvest at his expense.
My farm is situated on both sides of Spring River,
near the beautiful town of Baxter Springs in Cherokee
County. It is both a grain and stock farm, with a lake
in the centre fed by springs. It lies midway between
the rich lead and zinc mines around Galena and the
Quapaw mining camp in Oklahoma, six miles distant
from each, and seven miles east of the model farm of J.
C. Naylor, who prides himself on having the best farm
in Cherokee County.
He has a good farm, but Cherokee is a large county
and contains many fine farms. In some counties the
farm of Eugene F. Ware would be considered a model
(and it is when compared to that of Mr. Naylor), but
neither quite reaches the standard of first-class farms
on Spring Eiver. The farm of Colonel H. H. Gregg
adjoins mine on the south, and we are willing to com-
pete with Mr. Naylor at any time for the prize.
But while Mr. Naylor and the farmers of Spring
BACK TO THE FARM 371
River Valley may indulge themselves in a spirit of riv-
alry, I fear it would not be prudent for us to flaunt
our banners in the face of young farmers in the State
who are working under rules and regulations pre-
scribed by the Kansas State Agricultural College, an
institution of which all Kansas farmers are justly
proud. That school has already raised the standard of
scientific farming so high that I see no way out of it
but for Naylor, Ware, Gregg, and myself, to beat our
guns into ploughshares, our spears into hoes, and our
swords into pruning-hooks, and buckle down to the soil
as in the days of our youth.
That is just what the Palmetto men and boys of the
South are doing, as will appear from the following
clipped from " Collier's Weekly " of recent date:
Two BLADES OF GRASS WHERE ONE GREW BEFORE
Jerry H. Moore, of Florence County, South Carolina, is
the champion corn raiser of the world; at least he is the
champion among boys and, so far as we know, the champion
among men at the present time. Jerry raised two hundred
and twenty-eight bushels and three pecks on a single acre
last Summer — that is, within twenty-four bushels of the
world's record, which was made twenty-two years ago.
There are more than a million full-grown men farmers in the
United States who were content, when they gathered their
crop last October, to find they had raised forty bushels an
acre, one-fifth of Jerry's crop. There is a hint of important
changes to come, in the fact that Jerry lives not in Iowa,
nor in Illinois, nor in any other part of what is commonly
called the Corn Belt, but in South Carolina, within seventy-
five miles of the Atlantic Ocean. In the present state of this
nation it is more important to give distinction for perform-
ances like Jerry Moore's than for proficiency in rhetoric;
and more suitable to print a picture of him than of the man
who won the local nomination for Congress. President W.
W. Finley of the Southern Railway said of the recent South
Atlantic States Corn Exposition that ' It marks what I be-
lieve to be the most important development in Southern
agriculture since the invention of the cotton-gin.' Practical
372 KANSAS IN THE SIXTIES
persons who want to learn more about Jerry Moore's meth-
ods of cultivation can probably find out by writing to Mr.
William E. Gonzales, who is the editor of The State, at
Columbia, South Carolina, and is an enthusiast on his State's
progress in corn-raising.
This young man, doubtless, is the grandson of one
of "Wade Hampton 's bold riders in the Civil War ; and
whether he is or not, he has demonstrated to the world
that the hoe is mightier than the sword. He has struck
high-water mark, in so far as I have observed, and it
now remains for the brave boys of Kansas, Iowa, and
Illinois to beat it if they can.
FAKMING WITH DYNAMITE
During the past three years I have been making ex-
periments with the view of pulverizing the subsoil and
utilizing the rainfall. In a communication to " The
Kansas Farmer " of date March 13, 1909, I explained
my theory and methods as follows :
In many parts of the West, and especially in South-
eastern Kansas, the surface soil is underlaid with a stratum
of compact subsoil or " hard pan," which is impervious to
water and impenetrable to the roots of growing grain,
grasses, alfalfa, and many other products essential to the
farm. These strata of so-called " hard pan " vary in thick-
ness and depth ; but, however thick or deep they may lie be-
low the surface soil, they check the growth of the cereals,
grasses, alfalfa, sugarbeets, fruit trees, and other things
which have need to send their roots downward to their nat-
ural depth through an easily penetrable subsoil that receives
the surplus rainfall and retains moisture during the season
when moisture is most needed. On some farms which I have
visited, the ' ' hard pan ' ' lies within six inches of the surface
and varies in thickness from six inches to six feet. Gen-
erally speaking, it is impossible for such land to produce
more than a half crop, whether the season be wet or dry. On
such land, the roots of corn and other things will go down
to the " hard pan," turn off at right angles, and draw their
nourishment only from the surface soil. That soil to the
BACK TO THE FARM 373
depth of the plough, an average of six inches, is speedily
filled with water when the rains set in, while the surplus
rainfall, from three to four feet annually, rolls off to the
ravines and is lost to agriculture, when it could be easily
stored in sub-reservoirs for use when needed by breaking the
" hard pan " with powder and allowing the water to pass
through or into such reservoirs.
Last summer I tried the experiment of breaking the ' ' hard
pan " on my farm in Cherokee County, preparatory to
sowing the same in alfalfa. I used an ordinary two-inch
auger, remodelled by a blacksmith, with a steel handle added,
suitable for the purpose. We bored holes in the ground from
two to six feet deep, and from twenty to thirty feet apart,
according to the nature and compactness of the subsoil and
' ' hard pan. ' ' We used one stick of ordinary blasting-powder
in each hole, which would create an opening to the surface
of from eight to ten inches in diameter, break the ground all
around for a distance of from ten to fifteen feet, and at the
same time establish a sub-reservoir below the bottom of the
bored hole from three to six feet in diameter, with the ' ' hard
pan " all around shivered into fragments. Blasting powder
of average strength, such as I used, breaks downward with
greater force than otherwise. The holes and openings so
created should be filled or partially filled with sand or gravel,
so as to keep them open permanently as a passage way for
the surplus rainfall. The water thus conveyed into sub-
reservoirs, whether it remains therein any length of time or
distributes itself through subsoil, will linger and leave mois-
ture sufficient to supply the roots of everything that grows
in the ground. Heretofore, instead of thus storing the sur-
plus water for use when most needed, which nature always
brings in abundance, it has been allowed to go to waste, and
the farmers suffer the consequences when the dry weather
sets in.
My experience is that Nature always does the right
thing at the right time. She supplies us liberally with
everything essential and if we neglect or fail to avail our-
selves of her bountiful gifts, we have only ourselves to blame.
Sometimes we think the rainfall at certain seasons is too
much, and at others, not enough, but the plan suggested will,
in my opinion, remedy both these supposed evils. The bulk
of the surplus rainfall, whether thirty or forty inches each
374 KANSAS IN THE SIXTIES
year will readily be absorbed by the broken ground and
shattered " hard pan " underneath the surface soil, and in
consequence thereof, a sufficient amount of moisture will be
retained in the ground, not only to supply the growing
crops but also to keep other fields in good condition for fall
ploughing.
Nor are these the only benefits to be derived. When
the spring rains come, the water often stands in fields until
it is too late to plant, or if the planting season is past, then
until the growing crops are drowned out. If that surplus
water, when it falls, could pass through into loose ground and
sub-reservoirs, all such trouble and damage would be
avoided.
But to break and utilize the " hard pan " that lies in
strata under many farms, and control and utilize thirty-six
inches of water that is handed down to us, sometimes in
torrents, is no light task. It is not so costly, from a money
point of view, but it takes labor, patience, and perserverance.
In so far as the money is concerned, it will take eighty
sticks of powder per acre, which, with caps and fuse at
wholesale price, are worth about $1.50, everything else es-
sential (except the two-inch auger, worth 50 cents) comes
under the head of labor, which any farmer can do at his
leisure in dry weather. The increased yield of corn or
wheat per acre in one season will richly pay for shooting the
ground; and as for alfalfa and sugar beets, it is indis-
pensable, where the ground is underlaid with " hard pan."
At least that is my experience in Spring River Valley.
Last summer I dynamited eight acres and seeded the
same in alfalfa. The ground was level; and when the fall
rains came, the water which formerly stood for days on the
ground, was immediately absorbed, leaving the alfalfa dry
and apparently in good condition.
That this is the proper method of treating compact
subsoil and " hard pan," has been demonstrated to my
entire satisfaction. It is already being tried by others,
and will eventually be the means of reclaiming mil-
lions of acres, now unproductive. Besides, it is the
proper way to drain wet and swampy lands and also to
prepare the ground for the planting of trees and
shrubbery.
BACK TO THE FARM 375
With this and other scientific experiments now be-
ing prosecuted under the direction of our State Agri-
cultural College, the Kansas boys will perhaps be able
to hold their own with the youth of South Carolina
and other corn-producing States of the Union.
Especially would this be true if the authorities
should close our manual training schools in the cities,
cut out the summer excursions, put the base-ball in cold
storage, let up on picture shows, and go to the garden
and the field for muscular training and picturesque
scenery. Then we should, ere long, have an average of
better men, mentally, morally, and physically, and not
so many tramps, beggars, thieves, safe-blowers, and
train-robbers. The cities are becoming hot-beds for
the breeding of criminals, and many of the young folks
are well on their way to ruin before their parents are
aware of the fact.
In a lecture recently delivered by Judge Estelle of
the Juvenile Court of Omaha, in the First Methodist
Church of Topeka, he said :
If there is a boy or girl in Topeka who becomes a criminal,
you parents of that child are responsible before God and man
for letting that boy or girl get into that path of life.
Criminals are made by society, and not of their own accord.
Because the man or woman is in the best of society, of the
best people of the town, does not make him any better than
any other person.
I do not believe in sending boys to the reform schools,
as in most of cases it does more harm than it does good.
The place for boys who need attention is the home, not the
reform school. The reform schools are a half-way station
for the boys. I think that we ought to have a large home
to which we can send these boys, and in a short time they
would be entirely different human beings. In the year 1886
I well remember sentencing seven boys to the reform school,
and in the year 1891, I remember sending six of that seven
to the State penitentiary for several years' sentence.
I have never yet sentenced a man for a one-year term
in the penitentiary that I did not feel that he would stay;
376 KANSAS IN THE SIXTIES
there longer than that or may be for life. The best way on
earth to spoil a boy or girl is to turn them loose on the
streets and let them do as they please.
The vulgar and immoral plays of to-day have more to do
with the downfall of the young life of the city than any one
thing of the time. I have seen more young people spoiled
by the imprint of a play than any one thing which I can
now recall.
In the country after a hard day's work, the boy or
young man is ready for rest and sleep. He does not
stroll off down town in search of amusement. When
awake, his mind is employed on matters of importance.
Kansas is, first of all, an agricultural and stock-
growing State. It also produces a fine quality and
variety of fruit, and contains rich deposits of lead,
zinc, coal, oil, and gas. The soil is rich, and the climate
is unexcelled ; and when the surplus population in our
overcrowded towns and cities go back to the farm and
become producers, instead of drones and idle con-
sumers, we shall have a State that will be the pride and
admiration of all its citizens.
CHAPTER XXX
CONCLUSION
IN reviewing the record of the past fifty-two years,
I have endeavored to be accurate and make plain
the important events and incidents as they occurred
during that stormy period.
The Act of Congress creating the Territory of Kan-
sas, was approved on May 30, 1854, and from that day
the real struggle for the life or death of human slavery
in this country began. The Proslavery statesmen of
the South, having already advanced on Washington
and captured the Executive and Judicial Departments
of the Government, proceeded to enforce slavery in
Kansas, and tried to protect it with a shotgun brigade
from Missouri. This was the beginning of the Civil
War, which ended at Appomattox. The shotgun brig-
ade was, ere long, driven back to Missouri, where they
struggled heroically with " John Barleycorn " until
called into active service by Governor Jackson and
General Price, and started on a run from Boonville
to the happy hunting-grounds.
To give a detailed account of all the atrocities com-
mitted by them in Missouri and Kansas would require
many volumes. In fact it is best to let the darkest
of their many crimes rest beside them in graves of
oblivion, where most of them are now sleeping. When
they started out on their perilous journey, they knew
not where they were going. They were simply rounded
up by shrewd politicians and driven like dumb cattle
to the slaughter pen. But it was a lesson to them and
a warning to future generations. That the result of
the war was a blessing to the people of the South goes
without saying.
377
378 KANSAS IN THE SIXTIES
The institution of slavery, which oppressed the peo-
ple and wasted their opportunities for a century, no
longer stands in their way. They are now disen-
thralled and rapidly adapting themselves to the new
order of things ; and ere long will lead the world in the
production of many of the necessaries of life. They
have the climate, the soil, the water, the timber, the
mineral, the labor, and all things essential to success.
The most serious question that confronts them, and
the whole American people at the present time, is a
lack of confidence in each other and in the integrity
of business industries. Of course, the Government at
Washington comes in for a share of criticism, and,
sometimes deservedly so; but a want of confidence
among the people themselves is the real danger that is
now staring them in the face.
The corporations, trusts, and individuals who think
they are fooling all the people all the time, are simply
fooling themselves. They may ply their games and
run with loosened rein for a while, but it is only a
question of time when they will be rounded up and
placed where they belong. Legions of such pirates
are abroad in the land, seeking whom they may de-
vour, and the sooner they call a halt and retrace their
footsteps, the better it will be for them.
The high-handed, criminal outrages committed
daily, openly, and notoriously in violation of the law
by chartered companies, corporations, trusts, com-
bines, bank and train robbers, officials, and Legislative
fixers, are bearing heavily upon the people en-
gaged in busines conducted on legitimate lines. They
have already crushed many and driven others to the
wall. They have demoralized legislatures, debauched
legislation, ignored the law, and defied the authorities.
If this is not treason, plain and flagrant, then, pray
tell us what it is?
Any person who reads the history of the past; the
rise, progress, and downfall of other Republics, will
CONCLUSION 379
not fail to see the dangers that now confront the Gov-
ernment and people of the United States. That this
Government has cut loose from a safe harbor and is
sailing recklessly in the wake of nations that have gone
down under the weight of their own folly, is as clear
as the noonday sun. Anybody, whether or not he can
read, ought to be able to see the whirlpool into which
we are drifting.
I may be unnecessarily alarmed over the dangers
that threaten from within and without; and I hope I
am. But judging from the temperament and char-
acteristics of the American people, and knowing some-
thing of the history of other republics, I fear the worst.
Somehow I feel that a storm is gathering, and that it
is time to reef our sails and pull for the shore. The
purple clouds all around seem angry and ominous.
The people at home and abroad are in a state of un-
rest. Nations are building Dreadnoughts and frown-
ing at one another, and seeking to become world
powers. Grafters, trusts, and the hog combine, screen-
ing themselves behind special protective privileges
granted by Congress, have destroyed competition in
trade at home, and are rapidly absorbing the net earn-
ings of every legitimate business and industry within
the range of possibility.
Fakers, free-booters, bank robbers, and highway-
men, are plying their vocation, seemingly without fear,
favor, or affection. The right of suffrage vouchsafed
to the American voters, as the foundation upon which
our Government stands, has become an article of com-
modity in many localities, and is bartered away with a
flippancy that seldom attracts attention. Members of
the Legislatures of a number of the States of this
Union have been known to sell their votes to be used
in the election of United States Senators, and then
go before the courts and with brazen, impudence ac-
knowledge their crimes.
In the face of all these things and other political
380 KANSAS IN THE SIXTIES
and official crimes and misdemeanors that might be
mentioned, how long, may I ask, can this Government
stand up and look honest people in the face? Well
hath the poet said:
Hide, hide, my country, thy diminished head!
But our Government and people are not alone in
their political debauchery. All nations at times lose
their bearings and stray off after strange gods.
Greece, Rome, and many other countries of the East,
wandered away from their moorings so far that they
never were able to get back ; while Spain, after playing
the colonial empire business for several centuries,
finally found herself stranded in the Philippines and
was sent home in rags.
It is to be hoped that our Government, while yet in
the bloom of youth, will square its action by the rule
of right and prove to the world what a republic can do.
APPENDIX*
TERRITORY AND STATE OF KANSAS
Area, 80,891 square miles, or, 51,776^40 acres
A BILL (H. R. 236) " to organize the Territories of Ne-
braska and Kansas, ' ' was, on the thirty-first of January,
1854, reported in the House of Representatives by the Hon.
Win. A. Richardson from Committee on Territories; passed
that House May 22; passed the Senate May 25; and became
a law May 30, 1854. A Constitution was adopted by a con-
vention at Topeka, October 23 to November 2, 1855. It was
affirmed that the Bill was submitted to the people of the
Territory, and ratified December 15, 1855, by a vote of
one thousand seven hundred and thirty-one for, to 46
against it.
A bill (S. 172) " to authorize the people of the Territory
of Kansas to form a Constitution and State Government, pre-
paratory to their admission into the Union, whenever they
have the requisite population " was reported in the Senate
by the Hon. Stephen A. Douglas, from Committee on Ter-
ritories, March 17, 1856, and recommitted June 25, 1856.
On the seventh of April, 1856, a Memorial of certain
individuals, representing themselves as Senators and Rep-
resentatives in the General Assembly of the " State of Kan-
sas," praying the admission of Kansas into the Union as a
State upon an equal footing with the other States, was pre-
sented in the Senate by the Hon. Lewis Cass, and referred to
the Committee on Territories.
A bill (H. R. 411) " authorizing the people of the Ter-
ritory of Kansas to form a Constitution and State Govern-
ment, preparatory to their admission into the Union on an
equal footing with the original States," was reported from
the Committee on Territories, House of Representatives, by
the Hon. Galusha A. Grow, May 29, 1856, and passed that
House July 3, 1856. In Senate referred July 7; reported
* The matter classified in this Appendix is not included in the
Index.
881
382 KANSAS IN THE SIXTIES
with amendment July 8 ; amended and passed Senate July 8,
1856, under same title as the preceding Bill (S. 356). The
House of Representatives took no action on the amended Bill
and it therefore failed to become a law.
A Bill (S 343) " supplementary to an Act to organize
the Territories of Nebraska and Kansas " was introduced on
leave in the Senate, by the Hon. John M. Clayton, June 16,
1856, and referred to Committee on Territories, June 24,
1856.
A Bill (S. 351) " supplementary to an Act to organize
the Territories of Nebraska and Kansas, and to provide for
the faithful execution of said Act in the Territory of Kansas
according to the true intent and meaning thereof, " was in-
troduced on leave in the Senate, by the Hon. Henry S.
Geyer, June 24, 1856, and referred to Committee on Ter-
ritories on same day.
A Bill (S. 256) " to authorize the people of the Ter-
ritory of Kansas to form a Constitution and State Govern-
ment, preparatory to their admission into the Union on an
equal footing with the original States," was reported to the
Senate from Committee on Territories, by the Hon. Stephen
A. Douglas, June 30, 1856, and passed the Senate July 2,
1856. Not acted upon by the House of Representatives.
A Bill (H. R. 75) "to organize the Territory of Kan-
sas, and for other purposes," was passed by the House of
Representatives July 29, and laid upon the table in the
Senate, August 11, 1856.
A Bill (S. 464) " amendatory of an Act passed May 30,
1854, entitled " An Act to organize the Territories of Ne-
braska and Kansas," was, on the twenty-sixth of August,
1856, introduced on leave in the Senate, by the Hon. John B.
Welle, and on the twenty-seventh of August, 1856, ordered
to lie on the table.
A Bill (S. 466) " to alter and amend the Act of Con-
gress entitled " An Act to organize the Territories of Ne-
braska and Kansas," was introduced on leave in the Senate,
by the Hon. John J. Crittenden, August 28, 1856, and or-
dered to lie on the table, August 30, 1856.
A Bill (S. 476) " amendatory of an Act passed May 30,
1854, entitled, " An Act to organize the Territories of Ne-
braska and Kansas, ' ' was, on the sixteenth of December, 1856,
introduced on leave in the Senate, by the Hon. Henry Wil-
APPENDIX 383
son, and passed the Senate, January 21, 1857. Not acted
upon by the House of Representatives.
THE LECOMPTON CONSTITUTION
A convention met at Lecompton, September 5, 1857,
took a recess for a month, and finished a Constitution, No-
vember 7, 1857. It was at once sent to the President. The
clause sanctioning slavery was submitted to the people, and
ratified, December 31, 1857, by a vote of 6,226 to 598 votes
against it. The entire Constitution was submitted to the
people, and its friends and opponents both claimed a ma-
jority. It was claimed that on the twenty-first of Decem-
ber, 1858, the Constitution, with slavery, was ratified by
6,143, against 589 received by the Constitution without slav-
ery. It was also said that on the seventh of January, 1859,
the Constitution was rejected, there being 138 votes for it
with slavery, 24 for it without slavery, and 10,126 votes
against it.
A Bill (H. R. 7) "to authorize the people of the Ter-
ritory of Kansas to form a Constitution and State govern-
ment, preparatory to their admission into the Union with all
the rights of the original States," was introduced on leave
in the House of Representatives by the Hon. Nathaniel P.
Banks, December 18, 1857, and referred to Committee on
Territories. Not further acted upon.
A Bill (S. 15) " to authorize the people of the Territory
of Kansas to form a Constitution and State Government,
preparatory to their admission into the Union on an equal
footing with the original States," was introduced on leave
in the Senate, by the Hon. Stephen A. Douglas, December
18, 1857, and referred to Committee on Territories. No
further action was taken.
A Bill (S. 37) "to provide for the admission of Kansas
into the Union," was introduced on leave in the Senate, by
the Hon. George E. Pugh, January 4, 1858, and referred to
Committee on Territories. Not further acted upon.
On the first of February, 1858, a preamble and joint res-
olution of the Legislative Assembly of the Territory of Kan-
sas " in relation to the Constitution framed at Lecompton,
Kansas Territory, on the seventh of November, 1857," and
concurrent resolutions "reaffirming the Topeka Constitution
of October 23, 1855," were presented in the House of Rep-
384 KANSAS IN THE SIXTIES
resentatives by the Hon. Marcus J. Parrot, and were laid on
the table and ordered to be printed.
THE MINEOLA AND LEAVENWORTH CONSTITUTION
A constitution was adopted by a convention which met
at Mineola, March 23, 1858, and adjourned to Leavenworth,
March 25, 1858, and finished its work April 3, 1859. It was
averred that the Constitution was submitted to the poeple
the third Tuesday in May, 1858, and ratified by a vote of
4,346 for it, to 1,257 against it.
A Bill (S. 161) " for the admission of Kansas into the
Union " was reported from Committee on Territories, Sen-
ate, by the Hon. James S. Green, February 18, 1858 ; passed
the Senate, March 23, passed the House of Representatives
with an amendment April 1, 1858. On April 2, said amend-
ment was disagreed to by the Senate, and a conference com-
mittee was appointed. The report of the conference commit-
tee was agreed to by both Houses, April 30, and the bill be-
came a law, May 4, 1858. By this Act, the ordinance —
adopted on the seventh day of November, 1857, by a conven-
tion assembled at Lecompton for the purpose of forming a
Constitution and State Government > — which asserted the
rights of Kansas, when admitted into the Union, to tax the
lands within her borders belong to the United States, but pro-
posed to relinquish such right on certain conditions, was de-
clared to be unacceptable to Congress ; and certain changes in
said ordinance was submitted for acceptance or rejection by
the people of Kansas.
A Bill (S. 194) " for the admission of Kansas into the
Union " was introduced on leave in the Senate by Hon.
William H. Seward, and referred to Committee on Ter-
ritories. Not reported on.
THE WYANDOTTE CONSTITUTION
This Constitution, under which the State was admitted
(after some amendments), was adopted by a convention
which met at Wyandotte, July 5-29, 1859. October 4, 1859, it
was ratified by the people by a vote of 19,421 for, to 5,530
against.
ADMISSION OF THE STATE OF KANSAS
A bill (H. R. 23) " for the admission of Kansas into the
Union ' ' was introduced on leave in the House of Representa-
APPENDIX 385
tives, by the Hon. Galusha A. Grow, February 15, 1860;
passed that House, April 11, 1860; and passed the Senate,
January 21, 1861, with an amendment, to which the House
of Representatives agreed, January 28, 1861. This Act de-
clared the State of Kansas admitted into the Union on an
equal footing with the original States, a Constitution and
State Government republican in form, which was formed by
the convention which assembled for that purpose at Wyan-
dotte on July 29, 1859, having been duly ratified by the
people of said State. The Bill became a law, January 29,
1861.
POPULATION
1860 107,206
1870 . . . . . . 364,399
1880 996,096
1890 1,423,485
1900 1,444,708
1910 1,690,949
This shows to some extent, the political battle that was
fought to a finish by the Free-State and the Proslavery men
in Congress over the admission of Kansas into the Union.
For six years the Proslavery advocates blustered and fili-
bustered, shrieked, howled, and hurled threats of secession in
double doses at the Free-State men. For six years the Free-
State men moved forward with a steady step, until their ad-
versaries withdrew, and Kansas was admitted as a Free
State.
MEMBERS OF KANSAS STATE GOVERNMENT, 1861
EXECUTIVE
Charles Robinson, Governor.
J. P. Root, Lieutenant-Governor.
John W. Robinson, Secretary of State.
Wm. Tholen, Treasurer of State.
Geo. S. Hillyer, Auditor of State.
Wm. R. Griffith, Superintendent of Public Instruction.
Benjamin F. Simpson, Attorney-General.
JUDICIAL
Thomas Ewing, Jr., Chief Justice.
Samuel A. Kingman, Associate Justice.
Lawrence D. Bailey, Associate Justice.
386
KANSAS IN THE SIXTIES
CONGRESSMAN
Martin F. Conway, Member of Congress.
LEGISLATIVE MEMBERS AND OFFICERS OF THE SENATE
NAME
J. P. Root, President
E. P. Bancroft .
J. F. Broadhead .
J. C. Burnett . . . . .
J. Connell
H. B. Denman
H. R. Button
P. P. Elder
H. W. Farnsworth ....
G. B. Gunn
S. E. Hoffman
S. D. Houston . . .
J. M. Hubbard
S. Lappin . .
J. Lockhart
E. Lynde .
J. A. Martin
J. H. McDowell .
Josiah Miller .
R. Morrow . . . .
T. A. Osborn .....
J. A. Phillips . .
H. N. Seaver . . .
H. S. Sleeper .....
W. Spriggs . . . .
J. J. Ingalls, Secretary .
J. Stotler, Assistant Secretary
J. R. Lambdin, Journal Clerk .
D. Wilson, Docket Clerk .
A. W. Pickering, Engrossing Clerk
T. S. Wright, Sergeant-at-Arms
H. M. Robinson, Doorkeeper .
F. R. Davis, Messenger .
COUNTY
Wyandotte
Breckinridge (Lyon)
Linn
Bourbon
Leavenwortb.
Leavenworth
Brown
Franklin
Shawnee
Wyandotte
Woodson
Riley
Wabaunsee
Nemaha
Johnson
Jefferson
Atchison
Leavenworth
Douglas
Douglas
Doniphan
Lykins, (Miami)
Doniphan
Breckinridge ( Lyon )
Anderson
Atchison
Breckinridge (Lyon)
Butler
Riley
Woodson
Nemaha
Brown
Douglas
APPENDIX
387
MEMBERS AND OFFICERS OF THE HOUSE
NAME
W. "W. Updegraff, Speaker
W. F. M. Amy
J. B. Abbott .
P. M. Alexander .
A. Allen ....
D. C. Auld .
D. E. Ballard .
0. Barber
J. C. Bartlett .
J. J. Bentz
W. D. Blackford .
F. N. Blake .
N. B. Blanton
W. E. Bowker
E. J. Brown
H. Buckmaster
T. Butcher . .
J. M. Calvert .
S. R. Caniff .
A. J. Chipman
R. W. Cloud .
G. A. Colton .
J. E. Corliss .
J. D. Crafton .
S. J. Crawford
H. W. Curtiss . .
G. A. Cutler .
W. R. Davis .
A. Ellis
1. E. Eaton .
A. Elliott
F. W. Emery . .
W. P. Gambell .
W. H. Grimes .
A. Gray ....
A. K. Hawkes .
J. E. Hayes
H. H. Heberling. .
T. P. Herrick .
E. Hoheneck
COUNTY
Lykins (Miami)
Anderson
Douglas
Douglas
Wabaunsee
Marshall
Washington
Douglas
Shawnee
Leavenworth
Douglas
Davis (Geary)
Allen
Shawnee
Coffey
Jefferson
Atchison
Leavenworth
Osage
Morris
Breckinridge (Lyon)
Lykins (Miami)
Johnson
Leavenworth
Anderson
Shawnee
Coffey
Douglas
Lykins (Miami)
Leavenworth
Atchison
Doniphan
Leavenworth
Atchison
Wyandotte
Breckinridge (Lyon)
Johnson
Doniphan
Wabaunsee
888
KANSAS IN THE SIXTIES
N. Humber . . .
J. H. Jones ....
W. C. Kimber ....
C. B. Keith . .
H. Knowles
J. Kunkel ....
W. W. H. Lawrence
J. F. Legate ....
E. P. Lewis ....
E. J. Lines ....
A. Low
J. McGrew ....
S. B. Mahurin ....
J. A. Marcell ....
J. E. Moore ....
P. G. D. Morton .
A. U. Mussey ....
J. T. Neal ....
T. Pierce . . . . .
J. S. Rackliff ....
A. Ray
G. H. Rees ....
W. R. Saunders .
J. W. Scott
0. H. Sheldon .
J. H. Smith
L. T. Smith
W. H. Smyth .
C. Starns . . . .
A. Stark
J. W. Stewart ....
E. D. Thompson .
B. Wheat
R. P. C. Wilson ...
L. Woodard
D. B. Emmert, Chief Clerk .
A. R. Banks, Ass't. Chief Clerk .
Arthur Gunther, Journal Clerk .
J. K. Rankin, Ass't. Journal Clk. .
T. Hopkins, Docket Clerk .
D. M. Adams, Engrossing Clerk .
B. P. Noteman, Enrolling Clerk .
Leavenworth
Linn
Doniphan
Atchison
Bourbon
Douglas
Franklin
Johnson
Atchison
Wabaunsee
Doniphan
Wyandotte
Bourbon
Franklin
Shawnee
Butler
Pottawatomie
Bourbon
Riley
Platte (Godfrey)
Jackson
Breckinridge (Lyon^
Coffey
Allen
Osage
Brown
Leavenworth
Riley
Leavenworth
Linn
Douglas
Douglas
Coffey
Leavenworth
Douglas
Shawnee
Franklin
Douglas
Douglas
Lykins (Miami)
Wabaunsee
Johnson
APPENDIX
389
C. Clarkson, Sergeant-at-Arms
F. House, Ass't. S 'gt.-at-Arms
W. V. Barr, Doorkeeper
C. T. K. Prentice, Messenger
A. L. Bartlett, Messenger .
Leavenworth
Wyandotte
Doniphan
Douglas
Shawnee
ROSTER OF REGIMENTAL OFFICERS, SECOND KAN-
SAS INFANTRY, MAY, 1861
COMPANY A
Leonard W. Horn
Thomas Fulton .
Luther H. Wentworth
James C. French
Captain
First Lieutenant
Second Lieutenant
Third Lieutenant
Jaa. R. McClure .
Anson R. Spinner
Jas. P. Downer .
Edward C. D. Lines
COMPANY B
Captain
First Lieutenant
Second Lieutenant
Third Lieutenant
Simon F. Hill .
Jas. W. Parmeter
Warren Kimball
John K. Rankin
COMPANY C
Captain
First Lieutenant
Second Lieutenant
Third Lieutenant
COMPANY D
Joseph Cracklin .
Thos. J. Sternbergh .
Lucius J. Shaw .
Edward D. Thompson .
Captain
First Lieutenant
Second Lieutenant
Third Lieutenant
Samuel J. Crawford
John G. Lindsay .
A. R. Morton
S. K. Cross .
COMPANY E
Captain
First Lieutenant
Second Lieutenant
Third Lieutenant
890
KANSAS IN THE SIXTIES
COMPANY F
Byron P. Ayers .
E. Bunn
B. B. Mitchell .
D. R. Coleman
Avra P. Russell
Chas. P. Wiggins
J. A. Graham
Robt. Newell
A. J. Mitchell
Chas. S. Hills
J. A. Fuller
W. T. Galliher
S. N. Wood .
Chas. Dimon
E. G. Pierce .
Wm. Tholen
Gustavus Schreyer
Ferdinand Jaedicke
Jas. C. Bunch
COMPANY G
COMPANY H
COMPANY I
COMPANY K
Captain
First Lieutenant
Second Lieutenant
Third Lieutenant
Captain
First Lieutenant
Second Lieutenant
Third Lieutenant
Captain
First Lieutenant
Second Lieutenant
Third Lieutenant
Captain
First Lieutenant
Second Lieutenant
Captain
First Lieutenant
Second Lieutenant
Third Lieutenant
REGIMENTAL OFFICERS SECOND KANSAS CAVALRY
MARCH, 1862
William F. Cloud
Owen A. Bassett
Chas. W. Blair .
Julius G. Fisk .
John Pratt
Cyrus L. Gorden
Joseph P. Root .
J. W. Robinson .
Charles Reynolds
Colonel
Lieut-Colonel
First Major
Second Major
Adjutant
Quartermaster
Surgeon
Ass't. Surgeon
Chaplain
APPENDIX
391
Samuel J. Crawford .
John Johnston .
Samuel K. Cross .
Henry Hopkins .
John F. Auddell .
Oscar F. Dunlap
Daniel S. Whittenhall
Edward C. D. Lines .
William M. Hook
Amazial Moore .
Horace L. Moore
George W. Stabler
John Gardner
Elias S. Stover .
A. T. Lovelette .
Huge Cameron .
James C. French
John A. Lee
Austin W. Matthews .
Patrick Cosgrove
G. M. Waugh .
Arthur Gunther .
David E. Ballard
John K. Rankin .
Byron P. Ayers .
Robert H. Hunt .
Charles Dimon .
Avra P. Russell .
John M. Mentzer
Barnett B. Mitchell
COMPANY A
COMPANY B
COMPANY C
COMPANY D
COMPANY E
COMPANY P
COMPANY G
COMPANY H
COMPANY I
COMPANY K
Captain
First Lieutenant
Second Lieutenant
Captain
First Lieutenant
Second Lieutenant
Captain
First Lieutenant
Second Lieutenant
Captain
First Lieutenant
Second Lieutenant
Captain
First Lieutenant
Second Lieutenant
Captain
First Lieutenant
Second Lieutenant
Captain
First Lieutenant
Second Lieutenant
Captain
First Lieutenant
Second Lieutenant
Captain
First Lieutenant
Second Lieutenant
Captain
First Lieutenant
Second Lieutenant
392
KANSAS IN THE SIXTIES
ROSTER OF REGIMENTAL OFFICERS SECOND
KANSAS COLORED INFANTRY
( AFTERWARD DESIGNATED THE EIGHTY-THIRD
TROOPS)
Samuel J. Crawford
Horatio Knowles
James H. Gillpatrick
James H. Gillpatrick
Jerome A. Soward
John R. Montgomery
William D. Clark . . . . .
Edwin Stokes . . .
George E. Hutchinson ....
Reuben F. Playford
George W. Wolgamott ....
D. A. Morse ......
Francis P. Thomas . . .
Jesse D. Wood
Josiah B. McAfee
COMPANY A
Samuel Sanders .
Charles Scofield .
Ralph E. Cook .
John R. F. Shull
Jesse Buckman .
Charles Scofield .
Richard J. Hinton
John M. Cain
James M. Trant .
Joshua J. Locker
James M. Trant .
Joshua J. Locker
James A. Soward
Marcus F. Gillpatrick .
John E. Hayes .
George E. Hutchinson
Thomas Adair
Thomas Adair
COMPANY B
COMPANY C
U. S. COLORED
Colonel
Lieut.-Colonel
Lieut.-Colonel
Major
Major
Adjutant
Adjutant
Quartermaster
Quartermaster
Quartermaster
Surgeon
Surgeon
Ass't. Surgeon
Ass't. Surgeon
Chaplain
Captain
Captain
First Lieutenant
First Lieutenant
First Lieutenant
Second Lieutenant
Captain
First Lieutenant
First Lieutenant
First Lieutenant
Second Lieutenant
Second Lieutenant
Captain
Captain
First Lieutenant
First Lieutenant
First Lieutenant
Second Lieutenant
APPENDIX
393
COMPANY D
Frank Kister
Reuben F. Playford .
George E. Hutchinson.
William M. Mercer
Benjamin B. B. Reppert
George W. Sands
John R. Montgomery .
Henry DeVilliers
Irenaeus C. Myers
William J. Brown
Henry F. Best .
James Adams
Samuel Kaisennan
Isaiah Nichols
Isaiah Nichols
Ebenezer H. Curtiss .
John M. Cain
David E. Westervelt .
Henry F. Best .
George E. Hutchinson
Alexander Rush .
Orlando S. Bartlett .
Orlando S. Bartlett .
William M. Mercer
Daniel K. Harden
James L. Rafety
Marcus F. Gillpatrick
Harry C. Chase .
Harry C. Chase .
Irenaeus C. Myers
John Branson
William G. White
Jesse Buckman
COMPANY E
COMPANY P
COMPANY G
COMPANY H
COMPANY I
COMPANY K
Captain
First Lieutenant
First Lieutenant
Second Lieutenant
Second Lieutenant
Captain
Captain
First Lieutenant
First Lieutenant
Second Lieutenant
Second Lieutenant
Captain
First Lieutenant
First Lieutenant
Second Lieutenant
Captain
Captain
First Lieutenant
First Lieutenant
Second Lieutenant
Captain
Captain
First Lieutenant
First Lieutenant
Second Lieutenant
Captain
First Lieutenant
First Lieutenant
Second Lieutenant
Second Lieutenant
Captain
First Lieutenant
Second Lieutenant
394
KANSAS IN THE SIXTIES
MEMBERS KANSAS STATE LEGISLATURE, 1865
STATE SENATE
James McGrew, President .
Bartlett, H. W. K. .
Barber, Oliver
Colton, Gustavus A. .
Danford, A. ...
Drenning, Frank H. .
Eskridge, Chas. V. .
Foote, Henry
Gambell, W. P. . . .
Grover, O. J.
Houston, D. W. .
Home, Daniel H.
Jones, J. H.
Legate, Jas. F. .
Lane, J. T
Manning, E. C. .
Milhoan, T. E. .
Murphy, Thomas .
Potter, F. W.
Quigg, Matthew .
Spear, S. .
Speer, John
Smith, A. H.
Twiss, Charles P.
"Weer, William .
A. Smith Devenney, Secretary
W. S. Newberry, Ass't. Sec.
M. M. Murdock, Docket Clerk
Ira H. Smith, Journal Clerk
L. M. Benedict, Engros. Clerk
W. B. Bowman, Enrol 'g Clerk
T. Mills, Sergeant-at-Arms .
Win. Thompson, Doorkeeper
Wm. Young, Ass't. Doorkeeper
Clarence Walrod, Page
Charles Home, Page .
Wyandotte
Junction City
Kanwaka
Paola
Fort Scott
Elwood
Emporia
Leavenworth
Leavenworth
Neuchatel
Garnett
Topeka
Kaw City
Leavenworth
Iowa Point
Marysville
Olathe
Atchison
Burlington
Atchison
Hiawatha
Lawrence
Blooming Grove
lola
Wyandotte
Olathe
lola
Burlingame
Topeka
Vienna
Wyandotte
Topeka
Topeka
Topeka
Paola
Topeka
HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
Jacob Stotler, Speaker . . . Emporia
Abraham, R. H Emporia
APPENDIX
395
Atwood, Samuel F. .
Benton, Milton R.
Broadhead, J. F.
Browne, O. H. .
Callen, A. W. .
Campbell, D. G. .
Campbell, D. L. .
Cavender, Henderson .
Christy, J. A.
Church, R. .
Cleavenger, L. D.
Coffinberry, C. C.
Cook, Hugh A. .
Craig, Warner .
Darby, Rufus
Detrick, D. .
Dille, C. L. .
Draper, William .
Dutton, M. R. .
Fairchild, G. H.
Finn, Daniel C. .
Foster, R. C.
Fletcher, James .
Glick, Charles
Glick, G. W.
Goss, William .
Griswold, Nelson .
Hanway, James .
Harvey, James M.
Hendrick, A. B. . . .
Hodgson, J. .
Houts, W. L.
Hughes, N. B. .
Jordan, Michael .
Karr, William .
Kennedy, J. R. .
Kennedy, Lawrence .
Kohler, C. .
Leland, Cyrus, Jr.
Leonard, M. R. .
Loomis, A. J.
Low, A.
Leavenworth
Atchison
Mound City
Ridgeway
Junction City
Shawnee
Mapleton
Garnett
Tola
Westmoreland
Fort Scott
Lincoln
Minneola
Black Jack
Washington
Highland
Lanesfield
Clinton
Oskaloosa
Atchison
Syracuse
Leavenworth
Tecumseh
Wyandotte
Atchison
Blooming Grove
Turkey Creek
Lane
Fort Riley
Rising Sun
Paris
Paola
Salina
Leavenworth
New Lancaster
Lawrence
Pleasant Bridge
Junction City
Troy
Bazaar
Twin Springs
Doniphan
396
KANSAS IN THE SIXTIES
Macdonald, S. D
Martindale, Win
McClellan, J
Mead, James R
Moody, Joel
Morrow, William
O'Brien, T. M
O'Gwartney, Thos
Page, F. R
Payne, D. L
Perry, W. B
Rawlings, N. P
Riddle, Robert
Rice, H
Rogers, H. D
Russell, Ed
Sammons, I. D
Salisbury, J. P. ....
Scudder, E. S
Shepherd, H. D
Smith, Henry
Snyder, S. J. H
Stafford, E
Spencer, J
Stewart, Watson
Storch, George . . .
Stratton, C. H
Strong, N. Z
Sutherland, D. H
Swift, Frank B
Throckmorton, Job ....
Wells, John D
West, A. G
D. B. Emmert, Chief Clerk
Freeman Bell, Ass't. Clerk .
C. S. Lambdin, Journal Clerk .
John MacReynolds, Docket Clerk
D. F. Drinkwater, Engrossing Clerk .
John T. Cox, Enrolling Clerk .
J. E. Follansbee, Ass't. Journal Clerk
J. D. Farren, Sergeant-at-Arms .
Thos. Archer, Ass't. Sergeant-at-Arms
Topeka
Madison
Holton
Towanda
Belmont
Lecompton
Leavenworth
Easton
Neosho Rapids
Columbus
LeRoy
Robinson
Grasshopper Falls
Osawatomie
Humboldt
Elwood
Albany
Leavenworth
Willow Springs
Wilmington
Leavenworth
Monrovia
Springdale
Council Grove
Humboldt
Kennekuk
DeSoto
Fort Scott
New Eureka
Lawrence
Burlington
Barrett
Ozark
Fort Scott
Topeka
Plymouth
Paola
Cedar Point
Ottumwa
Topeka
Lawrence
Topeka
APPENDIX
397
M. B. Crawford, Doorkeeper . . Topeka
C. T. K. Prentice, Ass't Doorkeeper . McKinney's
William Miller, Page .... Ridgeway
Albert L. Bartlett, Page . . . Neosho Rapid
Wm. R. Griffith, Page .... Topeka
MEMBERS KANSAS STATE LEGISLATURE, 1866
THE SENATE
James McGrew, President .
Akin, Eugene L
Anderson, David
Bartlett, W. K
Barber, Oliver ....
Drenning, F. H. .
Emmert, D. B
Eskridge, C. V
Foote, Henry ....
Gambell, W. P
Grover, 0. J
Houston, D. W
Home, D. H
Jones, J. H.
Legate, J. F
Manning, E. C. . . . .
Miller, Sol
Milhoan, T. E
Wheeler, Joshua ....
Potter, F. W
Quigg, M. . ...
Riggs, Reuben . .
Spear, S
Smith, A. H
Twiss, Charles ....
Weer, William ....
A. R. Banks, Secretary
A. Hitchcock, Assistant Secretary
W. F. Goble, Docket Clerk .
Ira H. Smith, Journal Clerk .
L. M. Benedict, Engrossing Clerk
Wyandotte
Lawrence
Paola
Junction City
Kanwaka
Wathena
Fort Scott
Emporia
Leavenworth
Leavenworth
America City
Garnett
Topeka
Kaw City
Leavenworth
Marysville
White Cloud
Olathe
Pardee
Burlington
Atchison
Marion Center
Hiawatha
Blooming Grove
lola
Wyandotte
Lawrence
Lawrence
Pleasant Ridge
Topeka
Vienna
398
KANSAS IN THE SIXTIES
W. B. Bowman, Enrolling Clerk.
T. Mills, Sergeant-at-Arms
Win. Thompson, Doorkeeper
G. Y. Arnold, Ass't. Doorkeeper
Clarence Walrod, Page
J. T. Miller, Page
Wyandotte
Topeka
Topeka
Topeka
Paola
Topeka
HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
John T. Burris, Speaker .
Allen, W. N. .
Arthur, J. M. .
Bauserman, J. P.
Blair, C. W.
Bradford, J. H. .
Brice, S. M
Bond, Joseph
Bonebrake, J. H.
Cain, W. S
Callen, A. W. .
Carlton, Milo
Cavender, H.
Craig, Warner
Cochrane, Charles
Coffin, A. M.
Drake, C
Dow, Isaac W. .
Fletcher, James .
Foster, R. C.
Fox, Charles E. .
Graham, George .
Green, W. H. .
Glick, G. W.
Griswold, Nelson .
Gross, James R. .
Harmon, 0. D. .
Harrington, N. .
Harvey, J. M.
Hollenberg, G. H.
Holliday, C. K. .
Humber, N
Jackson, W.
Jennison, C. R. .
Olathe
Oskaloosa
Centreville
Leavenworth
Fort Scott
Council Grove
Mound City
Humboldt
Lecompton
Atchison
Junction City
Pardee
Garnett
Baldwin City
Ottumwa
Le Roy
Americus
Neosho Falls
Tecumseh
Leavenworth
Highland
Seneca
Fort Lincoln
Atchison
Turkey Creek
America City
Twin Springs
Palermo
Fort Riley
Marysville
Topeka
Easton
Atchison
Leavenworth
APPENDIX
399
Johnson, A. S Shawnee
Kellogg, Josiah Leavenworth
Kelly, James H. . . . . . Willow Springs
Knight, Jonathan . . . . Tonganoxie
Kohler, C Junction City
Kunkel, Jerome Rising Sun
Lacock, Ira J Hiawatha
Martindale, Win Madison
Massey, E. W Paola
Montgomery, R. H Columbus
Mix, F. E Atchison
Moore, A. A. . . . . . Marion Center
McAuley, A Leavenworth
McCabe, David L Eldorado
McLellan, James Holton
Nash, Lyman Wathena
O'Brien, T. M Leavenworth
Parker, C. E Carson
Pearman, H Belmont
Pennock, Wm. ..... Minneola
Preston, H. D Burlingame
Phillips, Wm. A. .... Salina
Power, F. M. . . . lola
Quinn, J. C. ..... Mound City
Rankin, Jno. K Lawrence
Rees, J. G Mount Gilead
Rogers, D Humboldt
Rue, G. C Gardner
Sanford, Eph. H Allen
Stabler, Geo. W Huron
Shepard, H. D Wilmington
Stewart, J. W Garnett
Smith, James Barrett
Smith, H. P. . . . . . Rock Creek
Smith, Geo. W. . . . . . Lawrence
Smith, H. B Osawatomie
Stotler, Jacob Emporia
Underbill, S Osawatomie
Van Gaasbeek, Geo Grasshopper Falls
Walker, Isaiah Wyandotte
Wellhouse, F Pleasant Ridge
Wilson, Joseph S Mapleton
400
KANSAS IN THE SIXTIES
Wood, S. N
Woodard, Levi
John T. Morton, Chief Clerk .
John E. Thorpe, Ass't Clerk .
Wm. B. Brown, Journal Clerk .
J. A. Soward, Docket Clerk
Dwight G. Hull, Engrossing Cl'k
W. H. Cowan, Enrolling Clerk .
Thos. Archer, Sergeant-at-Arms.
L. W. Graham, Ass't. Serg.-at-Arms .
G. Pharaoh, Doorkeeper
C. T. K. Prentice, Ass ''t. Doorkeeper
Wm. R. Griffith, Page
Wm. Miller, Page ....
Francis J. Eice, Page
Cottonwood Falls
Eudora
Topeka
lola
Lawrence
Wyandotte
Atchison
Topeka
Topeka
Elmendaw
Lawrence
Lawrence
Topeka
Ridgeway
Topeka
MEMBERS KANSAS STATE GOVERNMENT,
1867
STATE OFFICERS
Samuel J. Crawford, Governor.
N. Green, Lieutenant-Governor.
R. A. Barker, Sec. of State.
J. R. Swallow, Auditor.
M. Anderson, Treasurer.
P. Mac Vicar, Superintendent of Public Instruction.
G. H. Hoyt, Attorney General.
JUDGES OF THE SUPREME COURT
S. A. Kingman
J. Safford .
L. D. Bailey .
Chief Justice
Associate Justice
Associate Justice
JUDGES OF DISTRICT COURTS
D. F. Brewer.
R. St. Clair Graham
C. K. Gilchrist .
D. M. Valentine
J. H. Watson
Sixth District
First District
Second District
Third District
Fourth District
APPENDIX
401
D. P. Lowe .
William Spriggs .
James Humphrey .
S. N. Wood
THE SENATE
N. Green, President .
Abbott, James B.
Blakely, William S. .
Clark, N. C. . .
Cooper, S. S
Dodge, William H. . . .
Emmert, D. B. .
Fisher, J. K
Foster, R. C
Graham, George ....
Green, L. F
Haas, H. C. . .
Harvey, James M.
Low, A
McFarland, P
Maxson, P. B
Price, J. M.
Rogers, James ....
Riggs, Samuel A. ...
Scott, J. W
Sharp, I. B
Simpson, B. F
Underbill, D
Veale, G. W
Wiley, A
Wood, S. N
A. R. Banks, Secretary
Jos. Specks, Ass't Secretary
M. R. Dutton, Jounral Clerk
W. F. Goble, Docket Clerk .
A. J. Simpson, Engrossing Clerk
Geo. B. Holmes, Enrolling Clerk.
D. L. Payne, Sergeant-at-Arms .
J. Drew, Ass 't Serg 't-at-Arms .
Geo. W. Weed, Doorkeeper.
Fifth District
Seventh District
Eighth District
Ninth District
Manhattan
DeSoto
Chapman Creek
Wathena
Oskaloosa
Holton
Fort Scott
Huron
Leavenworth
Seneca
Baldwin City
Leavenworth
Fort Riley
Doniphan
Leavenworth
Emporia
Atchison
Burlingame
Lawrence
Tola
Wyandotte
Paola
Jackson
Topeka
Ottawa
Cottonwood Falls
Lawrence
Wyandotte
Grantville
Pleasant Ridge
Carlyle
Topeka
Troy
Burlingame
Pardee
402
KANSAS IN THE SIXTIES
G. Pharaoh, Ass 't Doorkeeper
Clarence "Walrod, Page
Win. B. Griffin, Page .
Wm. H. Fletcher, Page .
Louisville
Paola
Topeka
Topeka
HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
P. B. Plumb, Speaker .
Allen, Harvey
Barker, Thomas J.
Booth, Henry
Bowman, George W. .
Bowman, William
Brandley, Harry .
Bryant, Peter
Butts, W. C.
Bent, C. H. .
Clark, T. H.
Cloyes, M. J.
Collins, T. E. .
Columbia, Charles
Conner, J. D.
Crocker, Allen .
Draper, William .
Dugan, John
Estep, Enoch
Evans, B. D.
Faulkner, J. K. .
Finn, D. C. .
Flickinger, B.
Gates, Lorenzo .
Goodin, Joel K. .
Goodin, J. B.
Gregory, H. J. .
Hamby, William N. .
Hannon, J.
Hannum, J.
Harmon, 0. D. .
Harper, G. B.
Hindman, S.
Hollenberg, G. H.
Emporia
Leavenworth
Wyandotte
Manhattan
Atchison
Atchison
Bazaar
Banner
Grasshopper Falls
Oswego
Big Springs
Lancaster
Albany
Council Grove
Eldorado
Burlington
Clinton
Leavenworth
Paris
Elwood
Stranger
Pleasant View
Geary City
Gatesville
Baldwin City
Humboldt
Belmont
Garnett
Leavenworth
America City
Twin Springs
Neosho Bapids
Willow Springs
Marysville
APPENDIX
403
Huffman, William
Jaquith, J. D.
Jenkins, E. J.
Jenkins, R. W.
Jewitt, J. W.
Johnson, A. .
Johnson, F. M. .
Kendall, J. A. .
Kennedy, L.
Kennedy, T. H. .
Kibbe, William B.
Killen, Daniel
Knight, Jonathan
Lane, J. S. .
Luce, J. M. .
Lecompte, S. D. .
Lindsay, Thomas.
Loomis, H. J.
Lyon, M. B.
Manlove, S. A. .
May, William J. .
Mclntosh, W. A. .
Miller, Josiah
Mobley, E. D. .
Moore, A. A.
Oliver, J. B.
Palmer, S. E. A. .
Parker, C. E.
Parker, W. E. .
Power, F. M.
Przybylowicz, M. .
Eobb, George H. .
Eogers, D. .
Eupe, J. B. .
Sheldon, H. C. .
Spencer, James M.
Spillman, A. C. .
Sponable, J. W. .
Stover, E. S.
Thompson, C. H. .
Thompson, G. W.
New Lancaster
Americus
Troy
Vienna
Coyville
Shawnee
Winchester
Squiresville
Pleasant Eidge
Lawrence
Ohio City
Wyandotte
Tonganoxie
Blooming Grove
Centropolis
Leavenworth
Garnett
Mission Creek
Montcello
Fort Scott
Monrovia
Barnesville
Lawrence
Salina
Marion Centre
Eossville
Auburn
Carson
Iowa Point
Carlyle
Leavenworth
Troy
Eogers Mill
Elk Creek
Burlingame
Topeka
Salina
Gardner
Junction City
Abilene
Atchison
404
KANSAS IN THE SIXTIES
Throckmorton, Job Burlington
Travis, W. F Marmaton
Tucker, Edwin Eureka
Turner, Joshua , Easton
Updegraff, W. W Osawatomie
Venard, A. Osawkee
Way, James P Mound City
Wells, J. D Barrett's P. 0.
Willis, M. G Kennekuk
Wilson, J. S Mapleton
John T. Morton, Chief Clerk . . Topeka
<J. H. Prescott, Ass't Clerk . . . Salina
Wm. R. Brown, Journal Clerk . . Emporia
G. D. Stinebaugh, Enrolling Clerk . Ohio City
Asa Hairgrove, Engrossing Clerk . Topeka
D. B. Jackman, Docket Clerk . . Fort Lincoln
J. A. Hunter, Sergeant-at-Arms . Topeka
M. B. Crawford, Ass't Ser.-at-Arms . Topeka
J. M Adair, Doorkeeper . . . Burlington
M. R. Moore, Ass't Doorkeeper . . Topeka
Frank Rice, Page .... Topeka
Charlie Painter, Page .... Emporia
Willie Miller, Page Ridgeway
C. N. Norton, Page .... Topeka.
ROSTER OF OFFICERS EIGHTEENTH KANSAS CAV-
ALRY, JULY 15, 1867
MAJOR
Horace L. Moore, Lawrence
COMPANY A
Henry C. Lindsay, Topeka .
Thomas Hughes, Lawrence .
John H. Wellman, Topeka .
COMPANY B
Edgar A. Barker, Junction City .
John W. Price, Fort Harker
Samuel L. Hybarger, Fort Harker
Captain
First Lieutenant
Second Lieutenant
Captain
First Lieutenant
Second Lieutenant
APPENDIX
405
COMPANY C
George B. Jenness, Ottawa
Peleg Thomas, Wyandotte .
James Reynolds, Garnett .
COMPANY D
David L. Payne, Doniphan
John M. Cain, Atchison .
Henry Hegwer, Marion
Captain
First Lieutenant
Second Lieutenant
Captain
First Lieutenant
Second Lieutenant
MEMBERS KANSAS STATE LEGISLATURE, 1868
THE SENATE
N. Green, President .
Abbott, James B.
Blakely, William S. .
Clark, N. C.
Cooper, S. S.
Dodge, William .
Elder, P. P.
Foster, R. C.
Graham, George .
Green, L. F.
Haas, H. C.
Harvey, James M.
Hippie, Samuel .
Learnard, 0. E. .
Low, A
Matheny, W. M. .
Maxon, P. B.
McFarland, P. . . .
Moore, A. A.
Price, John M. .
Rogers, James
Scott, J. W.
Sharp, Isaac B. .
Simpson, B. F. .
Underbill, D.
Veale, G. W.
E. C. Manning, Secretary .
Manhattan
DeSoto
Junction City
Columbus
Oskaloosa
Holton
Ottawa
Leavenworth
Seneca
Baldwin City
Leavenworth
Fort Riley
Monrovia
Lawrence
Doniphan
Baxter Springs
Emporia
Leavenworth
Marion Centre
Atchison
Burlingame
lola
Wyandotte City
Paola
Jackson
Topeka
Manhattan
406
KANSAS IN THE SIXTIES
Jos. Speck, Ass't. Secretary . . Wyandotte
M. R. Button, Journal Clerk . . Grantville
J. H. Titsworth, Docket Clerk . . Pardee
A. J. Simpson, Engrossing Clerk . Carlyle
Geo. B. Bolmes, Enrolling Clerk . . Topeka
M. W. Reynolds, Official Reporter . Lawrence
D. L. Payne, Sergt-at-Arms . . Troy
J. Drew, Ass't. Sergt-at-Arms . . Burlingame
Geo. W. Weed, Doorkeeper . . Parde
G. Pharaoh, Ass't. Doorkeeper . . Louisville
Clarence J. Walrod, Page . . . Paola
William R. Griffith, Page . . . Topeka
Win. H. Fletcher, Page . . Erie
HOUSE OP REPRESENTATIVES
Geo. W. Smith, Speaker
Andrews, A. J. .
Armstrong, Robert
Bierer, Everard .
Blackburn, Henry
Blanton, N. B. .
Bruner, J. B.
Butler, T. H.
Butts, W. C.
Byram, A.
Campbell, D. G.
Cooley, James
Donaldson,
Downs, John
Drinkwater, 0. H.
Duncan, Charles C. .
Edmundson, Lewis
Fay P. ...
Finney, D. W. .
Fletcher, James
Foster, James N.
FuUer, C. 0.
Gambell, W. P.
Garrett, J. W. .
Glick, G. W.
Goodin, Joel K.
Gossett, J. W. .
Lawrence
Neosho Rapids
Perry
Hiawatha
Linnville
Humboldt
Gardner
Erie
Grasshopper Falls
Atchison
Shawnee
Mt. Pleasant
Chelsea
Albany
Cedar Point
Ellsworth
lola
New Albany
Neosho Falls
Tecumseh
Peoria City
Marion Centre
Leavenworth
Potosi
Atchison
Baldwin City
Paola
APPENDIX
407
Grover, Joel Lawrence
Guthrie, John Topeka
Hagaman, James M. ... Elk Creek
Hamby, W. N Garnett
Hamilton, John .... Hamilton
Hastings, W. H. .... Pleasant Ilidge
Headley, T. G Garnett
Hewitt, Richard .... Wyandotte
Hinton, William .... Fort Lincoln
Hodgins, I. Centralia
Hollingsworth, S. , Tonganoxie
Huffman, William New Lancaster
Hulett, E. M. . . . . Fort Scott
Ingraham, Nathan D. Baxter Springs
Jaquith, J. D Americus
Jenkins, E. J Troy
Jenkins, R. W Vienna
Jennison, C. R Leavenworth
Johnston, D. M. .... Manhattan
Johnston, W. S. .... Oskaloosa
Johnson, W. S Lancaster
Kelley, Harrison .... Ottumwa
Lamb, William Detroit
Lane, Vincent J. .... Wyandotte
Lecompte, Samuel D. ... Leavenworth
Locke, D. W. C Holton
Millard, Ed. F. .... Salina
Miller, G. W South Cedar
Mitchell, William .... Wabaunseo
Mobley, R. D Minneapolis
Moore, J. B Fort Scott
Moore, H. C Troy
Moore, H. Miles .... Leavenworth
Patrick, A. G Irving
Philbrick, J. L. .... Doniphan
Plumb, P. B Emporia
Ristine, M. H Clay Center
Robinson, J. P DeSoto
Rockefeller, Philip .... Albany
Ryan, Matthew Leavenworth
Sears, Charles Eudora
Sharp, Isaac Council Grove
408
KANSAS IN THE SIXTIES
Smalley, B. F Xenia
Smallwood, W. H Wathena
Smith, A. A Twin Springs
Smith, P. H. ..... Leroy
Snoddy, James D Mound City
Snyder, S. F. . . . . Washington
Stewart, J. B. . . . . . Burlingame
Thompson, G. W. .... Atchison
Tucker, Edwin Eureka
Tucker, Horace Sigel
Vanderslice, Thos. J Highland
Wallace, James L. . . Leavenworth
Watkins, W. C. .... Oswego
Webb, W. E. . . . . Hays City
Welsh, H. P. Ottawa
Williams, B. W. .... Monrovia
Williams, H. H. .... Osawatomie
Wright, John K. ; Junction City
Zinn, George W. .... Lecompton
John T. Morton, Chief Clerk . . Topeka
E. C. Kennedy, Ass't Clerk . . Leavenworth
J. M. Mahan, Journal Clerk . . Junction City
M. R. Moore, Docket Clerk . . Topeka
Emma Hunt, Enrolling Clerk . . Emporia
N. Merchant, Engrossing Clerk . . Peoria City
H. C. Hollister, Reporter . . . Leavenworth
H. H. Sawyer, Sergeant-at-Arms . Wyandotte
M. B. Crawford, Ass 't. Sergt.-at-Arms Topeka
Horace Gibbs, Doorkeeper . . Oskaloosa
C. S. Norton, Ass 't. Doorkeeper . Topeka
Frank J. Nice, Page . . . .' Topeka
Charles F. Painter, Page . : . Emporia
Edwin S. Eldridge, Page . . ; Lawrence
APPENDIX 409
ADDEESS OF HON. JOHN DAWSON ON THE LEGIS-
LATURE OF 1868
DELIVERED BEFORE THE KANSAS STATE HISTORICAL SOCIETY,
DECEMBER 4, 1906
" There have been notable parliaments, conventions, con-
gresses, and legislative assemblies in the history of every coun-
try and of every State. There are occasional epoch-making
events which call the representative men of a commonwealth
together to devise methods and measures for the common
good, and the net result of their deliberations makes history
which is felt at home and abroad for generations afterward.
Such an assembly was the first Olympiad of the Hellenes in
776 B. C. Such was the result of the convention of the De-
cemvirs who promulgated the twelve tables of laws for an-
cient Rome. So, too, the Long Parliament of England, and
the National Assembly of France — the harbinger of the
French Revolution. Instances could well be multiplied in
American history.
' But it is only once or twice in a century that the occa-
sion is presented where an assembly of lawmakers may estab-
lish or decree a policy or code which accentuates history from
the very day of its enactment. It is rather by laborious and
dispassionate attention to the commonplace duties of civic
life that the average lawmaking body leaves its impress upon
the economic life of the State. It is an impress unnoticed at
the time, but it is there nevertheless, and nets an approximate
good or ill upon the common weal.
' ' In the American States, subject, as they are, to two sov-
ereignties, opportunity for epoch-making legislation is less
likely to arise in the State assemblies than in the national
Legislature — the Federal authority taking over to itself, very
properly, all matters of national concern. This, as Professor
Bryce has noted, causes a deterioration in the intellectual
fibre of the average State Legislature, as little elbow-room is
afforded to give scope to the talents of men of the highest
statesmanship. Accordingly, the Legislatures of the several
States are commonly given over to men of second-rate intel-
lectual vigor and of mediocre capacity. It is seldom that men
of the highest talents of constructive statesmanship can be
induced to serve their community in the State Legislature.
Thus it happens that mediocrity is characteristic of the aver-
410 KANSAS IN THE SIXTIES
age Legislature. And yet on that score it may be said that
such an assembly is more truly representative of the people
who elect them than a congress of collegians and professors
of economics would be; for it is not to be denied that medi-
ocrity and commonplace are most truly typical of the people
themselves.
' ' Perhaps we can agree that the true worth of a legislative
body will depend upon the painstaking and conscientious
manner in which it deals with the matters at its hand, viewed
from a sufficient distance of time to measure and gauge its
results, and when its deliberations have been welded by ad-
ministration into the jurisprudence of the commonwealth.
Judged by this standard the Legislature of the State of Kan-
sas for the year 1868 is easily the greatest Legislature that
ever assembled in this State, and, tried by the test of thirty-
eight years' results, it is second only to the Wyandotte Con-
stitutional Convention of 1859.
' ' For campaign political expediency a very high — in fact
an extravagant — place has been claimed for the Legislature
of 1905, and we will all bear witness to the earnest spirit with
which that body approached and grappled with its problems ;
but it is too soon — the perspective is yet too close — to justly
determine the lasting worth of its deliberations. If time and
experience give the Legislature of 1905 a place of note among
Kansas Legislatures, it is apt to be based upon what it at-
tempted and failed to do as much as upon its constructive
work. But this, too, is conjecture. Let a third of a century
roll by, and let our children determine its value.
' ' And now to the Legislature of 1868. A careful examina-
tion of the records of the time, the journals of the assembly,
the newspapers, the manuscripts, etc., fails to disclose the fact
that the members of that Legislature considered themselves
or their deliberative body in any way out of the ordinary. It
is commonly a praiseworthy and conscientious mood in which
a lawmaker forgathers with his fellows in the legislative as-
sembly. Only after repeated jolts are his ideals shattered.
The halo of the legislative hurdy-gurdy does not evaporate
in a day. So far as can now be known, the Legislature of
1868 was, in all outward respects, much like its predecessors
and successors. There may have been more than the usual
number of really big men of the State in that session of the
Legislature — I suppose there were. George W. Glick was
APPENDIX 411
there, and was chairman of the judiciary committee of the
House. It is worthy of remark that the honorable old sage,
who had been known for the last decade or two as a patron
and practioner of agriculture, had in earlier life a long and
honorable career as a lawyer, and he was in the zenith of his
career as an attorney when he served in the Legislature of
1868.
' ' D. W. Finney was there ; John Guthrie was a member ;
so were Harrison Kelley, Samuel D. Lecompte, H. Miles
Moore, W. H. Smallwood, and James D. Snoddy, and others
who have filled their niche and made an honorable name for
themselves in Kansas. Over in the Senate were James M.
Harvey, 0. E. Learnard, W. M. Matheney, John M. Price, B.
F. Simpson, Geo. W. Veale, P. P. Elder, and others of note —
yes, on reflection, it is perhaps safe to say that the personnel of
the Legislature of 1868 was considerably above the average.
In fact, there were men in both Houses who could adorn, and
who have adorned, the highest walks of public life.
" In the Senate were eight farmers, seven lawyers, three
merchants, three physicians, a conveyancer, a banker, a car-
penter, and a freighter, twenty-five members in all. Politi-
cally classified, there were five Democrats, twelve Republi-
cans, seven Radical Republicans, and two Radicals. Just
what subtle niceties in political economy caused the shades of
distinction between Republicans and Radical Republicans,
and between Radical Republicans and mere Radicals, is diffi-
cult to say. It may be a very poor guess to say that it was
analogous to the secta of ' the grand old party ' to-day
where certain philosophical principles have caused it to ar-
range its membership into three classes, namely : the machine,
the boss-busters, and the square-dealers.
"In the house there were forty-four farmers, seventeen
lawyers, seven merchants, five physicians, a minister, and one
each of fourteen other common avocations. The political
complexion of the house was twenty-eight Democrats, fifty-
three Republicans, two Radical Republicans, one Radical, one
Independent, one Democratic Republican, one ' Democrati-
cally disposed,' and one ' mixed.'
" The names of the Senators and Representatives may be
found in the volume of special laws of the session of 1868,
but it is a curious thing that neither the House nor the Sen-
ate Journal contains a list of the members. The padding of
412 KANSAS IN THE SIXTIES
legislative journals for purposes of revenue, which in later
years became reduced to such a fine art, was unthought of
by E. C. Manning, Secretary of the Senate, and John T.
Morton, Chief Clerk of the House. It is perhaps the glamour
which time throws over that session of thirty-eight years ago,
but the words of the poet kept trying to run off the point of
my pen all the time that I was jotting down my notes for
this address: ' Then none were for a party, but all were for
the State.'
" The Message of Governor Crawford to the Legislature
is a most valuable resume of the affairs of the State at that
time. Opening with the usual greetings, he branches at once
into the financial affairs of the State, saying that the prop-
erty on the tax-rolls of the State is $56,276,360 ; but ventures
the confident opinion that there is one hundred million
dollars worth of property in Kansas, and that it is for the
Legislature to find means and methods to remedy this ' glar-
ing defect.' Just what this grand old man would have said
if he had the present-day ' glaring defect ' in the assessed
property returns to deal with may be imagined, but can
hardly be described. The total receipts for the State in 1867
were $183,833.52 — not as much as the fiscal income of a good
second-class county nowadays. The interest receipts on the
permanent school fund for the last year, 1867, were four hun-
dred and twenty dollars. There would be no chance for a
Rowett or a Moxey to earn a reputation examining the State
Treasury shortages in 1868.
" The permanent school fund amounted to $59,846.03
The bonds of the State sold for ninety and ninety-one cents
on the dollar without clipping any coupons, but, on the con-
trary, by leaving on past-due coupons which had matured
while the bonds were being hawked about the country seek-
ing a purchaser. The Governor gives interesting information
regarding education in Kansas, manifesting that splendid
self-denying spirit which has swelled into a full tide with the
passing years, and which is the crowning harvest of the dream
of the pioneers.
We go to plant her common schools
On distant prairie swells,
And give the Sabbaths of the wild
The music of her bells.
" A subject which has passed from consideration, now-
APPENDIX 413
adays and for all time, but which was of overshadowing and
tremendous importance in 1868, and which was extensively
treated by Governor Crawford, was Indian depredations.
The Governor aptly says that ' a well-organized militia is
necessary for the security of a free State ' ; and it certainly
was in Kansas in 1868, when the Cheyennes, Osages, Otoes,
Wichitas, Kiowas, Arapahoes, Sioux, Comanches, and Paw-
nees, swarmed over the prairies, stealing horses and murdering
settlers, not only on the frontier, but penetrating the State
far into the settled districts.
" The State charities were reviewed, there being twenty-
five inmates at the Deaf and Dumb Institute at Olathe, and
twenty-two in the asylum at Osawatomie. The Governor in-
forms the Legislature that the lease will soon expire on the
buildings rented for the State Government, and hopes that
the east wing of the new State-house will be ready for occu-
pancy by the time the Legislature meets again.
" The Governor felicitated much on the fact that the
State had five hundred and twenty -three miles of railroad;
boasts of its excellent quality ; of the fact that the Union Pa-
cific earned over a million dollars for the preceding year. He
refers to the railroad land-grants, including that of the
' Katy,' which has recently been much talked about by men
who know nothing about it, and by others who know consid-
erable about it, which is n't true.
' ' The Legislature is urged to give its assistance to immi-
gration, for the Governor says : ' Kansas cannot afford to re-
main idle while other States are using every honorable means
in their power to encourage immigrants to settle within their
borders. The immigration for 1867 was fifty thousand, and
it should have been one hundred thousand.'
" The Governor touches on the Paris exposition and the
interest of Kansas therein ; pours forth the vials of his honest
wrath against the Secretary of the Interior on account of
what he calls the infamous treaty with James F. Joy for the
sale of eight hundred thousand acres of neutral lands, con-
siderable part of which was occupied by settlers. The Osage
lands, he declares, embarrassed the proper development of
the State. He commends the work of the codifying commis-
sion to the earnest attention of the Legislature, giving his
views as a stout and staunch Union patriot on the necessity
of putting aside mawkish sentimentality in dealing with
414
KANSAS IN THE SIXTIES
rebels and traitors, and winds up with a solemn conjuration
on the necessity of legislative economy ; and there is no touch
of irony in that, either, although there was no money in the
treasury to pay even the law-makers' per diem and mileage.
' ' In these days, when it costs over two and a half million
dollars a year to run the State Government, a brief review of
the Governmental expenses of the early days cannot fail to
be instructive:
In 1861
In 1862
In 1863
In 1864
In 1865
In 1866
In 1867
In 1868
the total
the total
the total
the total
the total
the total
the total
the total
expenses
expenses
expenses
expenses
expenses
expenses
expenses
expenses
of State
of State
of State
of State
of State
of State
of State
of State
Government
Government
Government
Government
Government
Government
Government
Government
were
were
were
were
were
were
were
were
$ 84,775.93
92,508.53
137,259.54
173,977.01
154,768.66
234,555.36
234,555.36
274,533.14
" The disbursements authorized by the session of 1868
were as follows:
Legislative expenses
Judiciary
Executive Department
Secretary of State ....
Auditor
Treasurer . .
Attorney-general
Superintendent of Public Instruction
State University
Adjutant-general
State Printing
Eent of State-house
Deaf and Dumb
State Normal School
State Agricultural College
Insane Asylum
Blind Asylum
Penitentiary
Miscellaneous ......
Price-raid commission
Negotiating sale of State bonds
Printing general statutes
32,978.00
22,950.00
4,700.00
6,300.00
3,350.00
3,000.00
1,250.00
2,100.00
7,500.00
5,205.25
18,000.00
1,800.00
10,500.00
5,637.00
8,715.00
12,600.00
11,722.11
80,255.64
13,512.87
4,457.27
3,000.00
15,000.00
Total $274,533.14
" Of the foregoing appropriations, much was for institu-
tional buildings. Thus the total disbursements of Kansas'
APPENDIX 415
greatest legislative session were but slightly in excess of a
quarter of a million dollars. It was not until as late 'as 1883
that the legislative appropriations for the State Government
passed the million-dollar mark. That year they were $1,005,-
540.91. But Kansas by that time had cleaved her way through
the preliminary difficulties and was striking a million-dollar
gait in her upward and onward journey, in her glorious race
' to the stars.'
" In this year of bountiful harvests and opulent citizen-
ship, the legislative appropriations authorized by the last ses^
sion (1905) are $2,974,720.10, and with the fees collected and
disbursed by the several State departments, will push the ex-
penses of State Government for 1906 over the line of three
million dollars. Yet the State levy for 1906 is substantially
what it was in 1868, although the intervening years have seen
it much higher. But according to Governor Crawford's mes-
sage in 1868, only half of the property of the State escaped
taxation. To-day the proportion is much greater, and yet the
burdens of State Government rest as lightly to-day upon the
fraction of our people and property paying taxes as they did
in 1868. This goes to show that our ability to pay taxes has
even outrun our extravagance.
' ' The great work of the session of 1868 was enacting stat-
utes which cover practically every subject of our civil polity.
That Legislature in fact made the law of the land. The Leg-
islature of 1867 had authorized the Governor to appoint a
commission to revise and codify the laws of the State, and the
executive had commissioned for that pretentious work three
men qualified indeed for such a task. These were Samuel A.
Riggs, of Douglas County, John M. Price, of Atchison County,
and James McCahon, of Leavenworth County ; and some day,
when Kansas gets through with her more utilitarian tasks of
building cities and railroads and pipe-lines and irrigation
ditches, and turns to take a thought of those who have laid
the foundation of her greatness, and to commemorate the
memory of those who despised not the day of small things —
when we come to adorn the State-house square with statues
of those who served her with distinction, there will be a mon-
ument of brass and marble to Biggs, Price, and McCahon,
who whipped into efficient and practical shape the confused
and crazy patchwork of legislation which constituted the laws
of Kansas prior to 186h.
416 KANSAS IN THE SIXTIES
" I cannot now tell you how inharmonious, incongruous
and confusing were the laws of Kansas prior to the codifica-
tion. Part of them had been enacted by the several Terri-
torial legislatures, whose principal business appears to have
been to repeal the statutes passed by every previous session
since the bogus Legislature of 1855. Part of the laws were
the work of State Legislatures attempting the hopeless task
of moulding Territorial enactments to fit conditions under
the State Constitution. The Territorial and State laws being
framed under different organic charters, preliminary work
by experienced lawyers, like the codifying commissioners, was
an absolute necessity before the revision could be undertaken
by even the most earnest and enlightened Legislature.
"It is the chief glory of the Legislature of 1868 that it
set itself with laborious care to this work, and neither faltered
nor dallied with the matters at hand. It is not uncommon
for Legislatures to authorize commissions to codify or revise
some branch of statute law, but we have all seen them grow
weary of the task of reviewing and intelligently passing upon
the revisions and codifications submitted to them for approval
and enactment. The most conspicuous example of this was
the proposed revision of the laws of taxation. In 1901 the
Legislature, like several of its immediate predecessors, recog-
nized the necessity of a revision of the laws of taxation, and
authorized a commission to sit in vacation for the purpose of
framing a new law for the assessment and taxation of prop-
erty. The commission accordingly, after most laborious re-
search of all the assessment laws of the American States,
submitted a Bill to the Legislature of 1903.
Perhaps is was not perfect —
He who hopes a faultless tax to see,
Hopes what ne 'er was, is not, and ne 'er will be.
" The Legislature of 1903 took up the Bill, criticized it,
amended it, botched it, quarrelled over it, fussed over it,
played small politics with it, wasted the greater part of the
session over it, and then dropped it. The Legislature of 1905
never touched the subject, and our chaotic system of taxation
still remains and, like as not, it will continue for another
decade.
' ' Not so the Legislature of 1868. It set to work and grap-
pled with one subject after another, and it was no mere ac-
APPENDIX 417
quiescence in the work of the commission, either; but the
Legislature intelligently examined, discussed, criticized and
amended the work of the commissioners. They passed the
Bills ; the Governor signed them ; they became the law of the
land ; and there are scores of these laws thus passed that re-
main on the statute-book, thirty-eight years after, without
amendment, and are to-day in no more danger of either
amendment or repeal than the ethics of the sermon on the
mount.
' ' I like the way the house started into work at the session
of 1868. There were no exasperating delays while the speaker
and the ' third house ' fixed up the committees. George W.
Smith, of Douglas County, was elected speaker. On taking the
gavel, he said:
' ' ' The business of the Legislature should be conducted without ref-
erence to party. It is proper that parties should exist. But when we
meet together in the legislative hall for the purpose of passing laws,
we ought to quell all political feeling. I have discovered that members
sometimes forget that they have taken an oath to discharge their duties
as members of the Legislature, particularly on political questions. The
Eepublican party can afford to be generous, and I hope it will be so,
and show no disposition to force any measures on the minority which
may be wrong. To the Democrats I will say, there may be hope for
them. I would say, in the language of the Scripture, "Fear not, little
flock, it is your Father's good pleasure to give you the kingdom.'
But it will require you to act honestly in the discharge of your duties.
I have heard that there have been boasts made that you liave the eon-
trolling vote. It is all proper, when political questions come up (which
I hope will not during this session), that you should use your votes
for the purpose of controlling them. But you must recollect that you
have also taken an oath to discharge your duties to the best of your
ability. '
' ' Let it be noted that the House met at noon, January 14,
The organization was completed, the Governor's Message read
and referred to a special committee for appropriate sub-
division among the standing committees, by January 16. On
January 17 the speaker announced all the standing commit-
tees, and the business of the session was under way. That the
Speaker practised what he preached in repressing politics is
demonstrated by his appointment of George "W. Glick, the
foremost Democrat in Kansas for a generation, as chairman
of the judiciary committee — a committee which in a session
to be dedicated to constructive legislation was bound to be
preeminently the principal committee of the House. Preston
B. Plumb, also a committeeman of the judiciary, was chair-
418 KANSAS IN THE SIXTIES
man of the committee on railroads, and that committee in
1868 devoted most of its time to encouraging legislation cal-
culated to bring railroads and railroad builders and railroad
investors to Kansas. That eminence and distinction in pub-
lic life were to be achieved by ' busting the railroads ' and
crying down the rapacity of corporate influences and railroad
greed, seems to have been entirely overlooked by the solons of
1868.
" The work of the codifying commissioners was taken up
without delay. The judiciary committee did not arrogate to
itself the latter-day prerogative of passing on the merits of
every bill submitted to it. It examined a multitude of them
merely as to their legal sufficiency, and then reported them
with the recommendation that they be referred to other ap-
propriate committees as to the wisdom of the subject-matter.
Of course, in a session devoted to the revision and codifica-
tion of the laws of the State, a vast amount of work fell to the
judiciary committee which could not in the nature of things
be profitably referred elsewhere.
" Let me briefly run over the list of subjects considered
and enacted into law by the session of 1868. These were the
laws of apprentices; assignments; attorneys at law; bonds,
notes and bills; bonds and warrants; commissioners to take
depositions; contracts and promises; conveyances; corpora-
tions ; county boundaries ; counties and county officers ; county-
seats; courts — supreme, district and probate; crimes and
punishments; damages against cities; descents and distribu-
tions; elections; executors and administrators; exemptions;
fees and salaries ; fences ; ferries ; frauds and perjuries ; fugi-
tives from justice; guardians and wards; illegitimate chil-
dren; impeachment; jails; jurors; landlords and tenants;
laws and legislative journals ; lunatics and drunkards ; married
women and their rights ; minors ; mortgages ; notaries public ;
oaths ; pardons ; partnerships ; plats of cities and towns ; pro-
cedure— civil; procedure — criminal; procedure — civil, be-
fore justices; procedure — in misdemeanors, before justices;
statutory construction; stock; town sites; townships and
township officers; trespassers; fiduciary trusts and powers;
wills.
' ' Only two important subjects were laid over for another
session — schools and taxation. These remained in confusion
until 1876, when another of the more important legislative
APPENDIX 419
sessions of Kansas considered them at length, and the enact-
ments of 1876 form the basis of existing laws on those subjects.
But it is to be regretted that these two subjects were not
touched by the master hand of the Legislature of 1868. Of
the long roll to its credit, however, much remains the law in
Kansas to-day without so much as a single amendment, and
where changes have been made they have not always been
for the better. Legislative tinkering is greatly to be decried.
How often have we observed that the whole scope and pur-
pose of a useful and valuable law is' crippled by the subse-
quent enactment of a well-meant amendment secured by some
lawmaker who had failed to consider the whole range of the
subject with which he was tinkering. Nothing like omnis-
cience or prescience is claimed for the session of 1868, how-
ever; but the fact remains that if every Legislature that has
since convened had contented itself with passing the neces-
sary revenue bills and the periodic apportionments required
by the Constitution, the commonwealth would have lived,
flourished and prospered under the beneficent laws of 1868.
' The law of descents and distributions, whereby a man's
property passes without a will to those who are most entitled
to his bounty, is still the law of this State, with only two in-
significant amendments.
" The law of executors and administrators, where occu-
pies some thirty-five pages of the General Statutes of 1901,
has stood the test of thirty-eight years' practical operation
with a scant half-dozen changes.
" The laws of exemptions, conceived in the days when
Kansas and its people were poor, is still the law in our day of
opulence, and if its necessity has largely passed, the reverence
of the sons for this wisdom of the fathers has saved this hu-
manitarian law from the iconoclastic hand of ambitious
innovation.
" The statute of frauds, time-tried before Kansas was
born, remains untouched.
1 ' Only slight changes have been made in the law of guard-
ian and wards.
" Kansas, with her glorious allodial land system where the
troubles of landlords and tenants have never given the State
concern, as in less favored portions of the earth, has found
the landlord and tenant act of 1868 sufficient for almost every
circumstance.
420 KANSAS IN THE SIXTIES
" The law of married women was framed for the enlight-
ened age of the present, and nothing of the dead past, when
woman was a chattel, is contained in its sacred sections. It
bids fair to remain untouched while Kansas endures.
" The codes of procedure were drawn from the most en-
lightened ideas of a procedure-reforming age, and have worked
out an approximate justice between man and man. They
have, of course, been changed in details with operative ex-
perience. Code-making and code-division are still going on,
and are bound to continue for many years. Indeed, it is
doubtful if court procedure will ever crystallize, as it did, and
remained for generations as common law.
" But I must bear in mind that this is a miscellaneous
audience, interested in history, and it would trench both upon
your patience and upon the occasion should I run this address
into a lecture on law.
" The law of wills, which occupied ten full pages of the
general statutes, has scarcely been touched through all the
years since its enactment.
" Perhaps enough has been said to demonstrate that the
Legislature of 1868 was the greatest that ever convened in
Kansas, and that other Legislatures have been great, and in
the future will be great, just in the measure in which they
approach their problems with the spirit and abiding purpose
of the session of 1868. . . .
" The local bills of that session were few; the times gave
little token of the deluge of petty bills which came with after-
years and which necessitated the Constitutional amendment
of 1906 pertaining thereto.
" As early as 1868 the extravagant and senseless practice
of scattering the State institutions at various places far dis-
tant from the State capital was foreseen, and a strong spirit
of retrenchment and reform was manifest; but local self-in-
terest was even then too strong to correct the expensive system.
The proposed concentration of State institutions was voted
down, and has never since been a subject of feasible under-
taking.
" On one point the wisdom of the fathers has come to
naught. In 1868 it was confidently believed and frequently
expressed that a day was speedily coming when the endow-
ment funds of the State University, the State Normal School,
and the State Agricultural School, realized from the sale of
APPENDIX 421
land-grants, would amply sustain these institutions. Gover-
nor Crawford, in his Message, expresses this confidence :
" ' It is sincerely to be hoped that such of our State institutions as
have been generously endowed from the public domain will soon be
able to dispense with the aid drawn from the treasury.'
' ' It would add little to this address to attempt to draw a
moral from the Legislature of 1868. And yet the lesson is
there. The Legislature which will conscientiously apply it-
self to the improvement of existing law will serve the State
better and establish a work more enduring than one which
devotes itself to the passage of a few spectacular, evanescent
bills which, when fickle opinion passes on to other matters of
like transient interest, will lie and rust in the limbo of for-
gotten uselessness.
11 I lay great stress on the Constitutional amendment of
1906 relating to special legislation. It will give the Legisla-
ture time to revise and perfect existing general laws. And
many of them badly need perfecting. The school law, the
school-land law, the bridge law, the law of municipal indebt-
edness, the law of taxation, and many others, need the same
laborious and prayerful consideration that was given to the
great codes and statutes promulgated in 1868. It is time we
had another commission to revise, rewrite, and codify all the
laws of the State. It will be forty years since the last codifi-
cation before it can be enacted, even if the coming Legislature
of 1907 should authorize its creation. And when the codifica-
tion comes, let us hope that men of the rank of Price, Biggs,
and McCahon will prepare the codification, and that patriots
like the legislators of 1868 will compose the assembly which
will enact it into law. ' '
CALL FOR STATE TROOPS, SEPTEMBER 10, 1868
PROCLAMATION
STATE OF KANSAS, EXECUTIVE OFFICE,
TOPEKA, September 14, 1868.
The recent acts of atrocity perpetrated by hostile Indians
upon citizens of Kansas, with other accumulating circum-
stances, indicate with unerring certainty that a general In-
dian war is inevitable. The United States forces in this de-
partment are too few in number to answer the emergency,
422 KANSAS IN THE SIXTIES
and the appeals of our frontier settlers for protection and re-
dress cannot with honor be disregarded.
The undersigned, therefore, hereby calls into active serv-
ice, for a period of three months, unless sooner discharged,
five companies of cavalry, to be organized from the militia of
the State, for service upon the border. Each man will be re-
quired to furnish his own horse ; but arms, accoutrements and
rations will be furnished by Major General Sheridan. One
company, to be recruited in the Republican Valley, will ren-
dezvous at Ayersburg; one company will rendezvous at Sa-
lina; one company at Topeka; one company at Fort Harker;
and the remaining company at Marion Centre.
Recruiting officers will be designated for each company,
and when notice of the organization of a company shall have
been received, the men will be mustered and company officers
appointed. Each company will consist of not less than eighty
(80) nor more than one hundred (100) enlisted men.
As the State has no fund at present from which the men
hereby called into service can be paid, it is expressly under-
stood that all claims for service must await the action of the
Legislature.
S. J. CRAWFORD,
Governor.
ROSTER OF OFFICERS, FRONTIER BATTALION,
1868
MAJOR
George B. Jenness
COMPANY A
S. J. Jennings Captain
J. F. DeLong First Lieutenant
W. A. Loveoy Second Lieutenant
COMPANY B
H. D. Baker Captain
Julius A. Case First Lieutenant
Alex. K. Pierce Second Lieutenant
COMPANY c
B. C. Sanders Captain
Gilman D. Brooks First Lieutenant
Herod Johnson . , Second Lieutenant
APPENDIX 423
COMPANY D
A. J. Armstrong Captain
D. L. Eby First Lieutenant
G. Moulton Second Lieutenant
COMPANY E
J. A. Potts Captain
Albert Schaltenbrand First Lieutenant
Henry Spaulding Second Lieutenant
CHEROKEE TREATY OF 1868
Supplemental article to a treaty concluded at Washington
City, July 19th, A. D, 1866; ratified with amendments
July 27th, A. D. 1866; amendments accepted, July 31st,
A. D. 1866 ; and the whole proclaimed, August llth, A. D.
1866, between the United States of America and the Chero-
kee Nation of Indians.
Whereas under the provisions of the seventeenth article
of a treaty and amendments thereto made between the United
States and the Cherokee Nation of Indians, and proclaimed
August llth, A. D. 1866, a contract was made and entered
into by James Harlan, Secretary of the Interior, on behalf of
the United States, of the one part, and by the American Emi-
grant Company, a corporation chartered and existing under
the laws of the State of Connecticut, of the other part, dated
August 30th. A. D. 1866, for the sale of the so-called ' ' Chero-
kee neutral lands," in the State of Kansas, containing eight
hundred thousand acres, more or less, with the limitations and
restrictions set forth in the said seventeenth article of said
treaty as amended, on the terms and conditions therein men-
tioned, which contract is now on file in the Department of the
Interior; and
Whereas Orville H. Browning, Secretary of the Interior,
regarding said sale as illegal and not in conformity with said
treaty and amendments thereto, did, on the ninth day of Octo-
ber, A. D. 1867 for and in behalf of the United States, enter
into a contract with James F. Joy, of the city of Detroit, Mich-
igan, for the sale of the aforesaid lands on the terms and con-
ditions in said contract set forth, and which is on file in the
Department of the Interior ; and
424 KANSAS IN THE SIXTIES
Whereas, for the purpose of enabling the Secretary of the
Interior, as trustee for the Cherokee Nation of Indians, to
collect the proceeds of sales of said lands and invest the same
for the benefit of said Indians, and for the purpose of pre-
venting litigation and of harmonizing the conflicting interests
of the said American Emigrant Company and of the said
James F. Joy, it is the desire of all parties in interest that the
said American Emigrant Company shall assign their said con-
tract and all their right, title, claim, and interest in and to the
said ' ' Cherokee neutral lands ' ' to the said James F. Joy, and
that the said Joy shall assume and conform to all the obliga-
tions of said company under their said contract, as herein-
after modified :
It is, therefore, agreed, by and between Nathaniel G. Tay-
lor, commissioner on the part of the United States of Amer-
ica, and Lewis Downing, H. D. Reese, Win. P. Adair, Elias C.
Boudinot, J. A. Scales, Archie Scraper, J. Porum Davis, and
Samuel Smith, commissioners on the part of the Cherokee
Nation of Indians, that an assignment of the contract made
and entered into on the 30th day of August, A. D. 1866, by
and between James Harlan, Secretary of the Interior, for and
in behalf of the United States of America, of the one part,
and in behalf of the American Emigrant Company, a corpora-
tion chartered and existing under the laws of the State of
Connecticut, of the other part, and now on file in the Depart-
ment of the Interior, to James F. Joy, of the city of Detroit,
Michigan, shall be made; and that said contract, as herein-
after modified, be and the same is hereby, with the consent of
all parties, reaffirmed and declared valid; and that the con-
tract entered into by and between Orville H. Browning, for
and in behalf of the United States, of the one part, and James
F. Joy, of the city of Detroit, Michigan, of the other part, on
the 9th day of October, A. D. 1867, and now on file in the De-
partment of the Interior, shall be relinquished and cancelled
by the said James F. Joy, or his duly authorized agent or at-
torney ; and the said first contract as hereinafter modified, and
the assignment of the first contract, and the relinquishment of
the second shall be entered of record in the Department of the
Interior ; and when the said James F. Joy shall have accepted
said assignment and shall have entered into a contract with
the Secretary of the Interior to assume and perform all obli-
gations of the said American Emigrant Company under said
first-named contract, as hereinafter modified.
APPENDIX 425
The modifications hereinbefore mentioned of said contract
are hereby declared to be : —
1. That within ten days from the ratification of this sup-
plemental article the sum of seventy-five thousand dollars
shall be paid to the Secretary of the Interior as trustee for the
Cherokee Nation of Indians.
2. That the other deferred payments specified in said con-
tract shall be paid when they respectively fall due, with in-
terest only from the date of the ratification hereof.
It is further agreed and distinctly understood that under
the conveyance of the " Cherokee nautral lands " to the said
American Emigrant Company, " with all beneficial interests
therein," as set forth in said contract, the said company and
their assignees shall take only the residue of said lands after
securing to ' ' actual settlers ' ' the lands to which they are en-
titled under the provisions of the seventeenth article and
amendments thereto of the said Cherokee treaty of August
llth, 1866 ; and that the proceeds of the sales of said lands,
so occupied at the date of said treaty by " actual settlers,"
shall enure to the sole benefit of, and be retained by, the Secre-
tary of the Interior as trustee for the said Cherokee Nation of
Indians.
In testimony whereof, the said commissioners on the part
of the United States, and on the part of the Cherokee Nation of
Indians, have hereunto set their hands and seals, at the city
of Washington, this 27th day of April, A. D. 1868.
N. G. TAYLOR,
Commissioner in behalf of the United States.
Delegates of the Cherokee Nation :
LEWIS DOWNING,
Chief of Cherokees.
H. D. REESE,
Chairman of Delegation.
SAMUEL SMITH,
WM. P. AD AIR,
J. P. DAVIS,
ELIAS C. BOUDINOT,
J. A. SCALES,
ARCH. SCRAPER,
Cherokee Delegates.
In presence of —
H. M. WATTERSON,
CHARLES E. Mix.
426 KANSAS IN THE SIXTIES
CALL FOR STATE TROOPS, OCTOBER 10, 1868
PROCLAMATION
EXECUTIVE OFFICE,
TOPEKA, October 10, 1868.
"With scarcely an exception, all the tribes of Indians on
the plains in Kansas or contiguous thereto, have taken up
arms against the Government, and are now engaged in acts
of hostility. The peace of the exposed border is thereby dis-
turbed, quiet and unoffending citizens driven from their
homes, or ruthlessly murdered, and their property destroyed
or carried away. In fact children have been carried into cap-
tivity, and in many instances barbarously murdered; while
many women have been repeatedly violated in the presence
of their husbands and families.
Besides these instances of individual suffering, great pub-
lic interests are being crippled and destroyed by this savage
hostility. The commerce of the plains is entirely suspended.
The mail routes, and the great lines of travel to the Terri-
tories and States beyond us, are constantly being blockaded,
and are sometimes completely closed for the space of several
days.
Longer to forbear with these bloody fiends would be a
crime against civilization, and against the peace, security,
and lives of all the people upon the frontier. The time has
come when they must be met by an adequate force, not only
to prevent the repetition of these outrages, but to penetrate
their haunts, break up their organizations, and either ex-
terminate the tribes, or confine them upon reservations set
apart for their occupancy. To this end the Major-General
commanding this department has called upon the Executive
for a regiment of cavalry from this State.
Now, therefore, I, Samuel J. Crawford, Governor of the
State of Kansas, do call for volunteers from the militia of the
State, to the number set forth in the foregoing letter from
Major-General Sheridan, to be mustered into the service of
the United States, and to serve for a period of six months, un-
less sooner discharged. It is desirable that the regiment shall
be organized at the earliest possible moment, and with this
view recruiting officers will be appointed in various portions
of the State. The Adjutant General will issue the necessary
orders to carry this proclamation into effect.
S. J. CRAWFORD, Governor.
APPENDIX 427
THANKSGIVING PROCLAMATION, NOVEMBER 4, 1868
PROCLAMATION
EXECUTIVE OFFICE,
TOPEKA, KAN., November 4, 1868.
An immemorial custom devolves upon the Executive the
duty of setting apart one day to be observed by all the people
of the State as a day of Thanksgiving for mercies past, and of
Prayer for the continuance of divine favor.
The measure of prosperity accorded to us has been over-
flowing. Although in some localises the usual fruits of the
earth have been partially withheld, our general harvests have
been abundant. The remote frontier has been harassed by
predatory bands of hostile Indians, and shocking outrages
have been perpetrated upon the persons and property of the
frontier settlers. With this exception, universal peace has
prevailed throughout our borders.
During the year the area of development has been widely
extended. Our population has increased with unexampled
rapidity. Every department of industry has been vigorously
promoted and advanced. Labor has met its just reward;
commerce has returned fruitful gains; and law, order, and
personal security have distinguished our society.
It is meet and proper that, as a people, we acknowledge
our gratitude to Almighty God for all these blessings, and
our entire dependence upon Him for every moral and civil
safeguard which gives protection to the citizen and glory to
the Commonwealth.
Now, therefore, I, Samuel J. Crawford, Governor of the
State of Kansas, in pursuance of a time-honored custom, do
designate
THURSDAY, NOVEMBER 26, 1868,
as a day of thanksgiving and prayer.
And I do earnestly commend to all the people of the State
that upon said day they suspend their ordinary avocations,
and mutually return thanks to the Father of all for his benefi-
cent guidance. Let us also invoke His favor for the future,
praying that permanent peace may be brought to our borders ;
that our resources may be further developed ; that we may be
enabled justly to pride ourselves upon a faithful administra-
tion of just laws, and upon institutions which are without
reproach.
428 KANSAS IN THE SIXTIES
In testimony whereof, I have hereunto set my hand and
caused the great seal of the State to be affixed, the day and
year first above written.
S. J. CRAWFORD,
Governor.
ROSTER OF THE NINETEENTH KANSAS CAVALRY
FIELD, STAFF, AND LINE OFFICERS
MUSTERED INTO UNITED STATES SERVICE OCTOBER 29, 1868.
MUSTERED OUT AND DISCHARGED APRIL 18, 1869.
Colonel Samuel J. Crawford, Topeka; mustered in as Col.
Nov. 4, 1868; resigned Feb. 12, 1869.
Colonel Horace L. Moore, Topeka ; mustered in as Lieut.-Col ;
pro. Col. Mar. 23, 1869.
Lieutenant- Colonel Horace L. Moore, Topeka; mustered in as
Lieut.-Col. Mar. 23, 1869. '
Lieutenant-Colonel William C. Jones, lola; mustered in as
Major; pro. Lieut.-Col. Mar. 23, 1869.
Major William C. Jones, lola; mustered in as Major; pro.
Lieut.-Col. ; pro. Col. Mar. 23, 1869.
Major Charles Dimon, Topeka; mustered in as Capt. Co. G;
pro. Major Oct. 20, 1868.
Major Richard W. Jenkins, Topeka ; mustered in as Major.
Major Milton Stewart, Topeka; mustered in as Capt. Co. K;
pro. Major Mar. 23, 1869.
Surgeon Mahlon Bailey, Topeka ; mustered in as Surgeon.
Assistant Surgeon Ezra P. Russell, Topeka; mustered in as
Ass 't Surgeon.
Assistant Surgeon Robert Aikman, Topeka; mustered in as
Ass 't Surgeon.
Adjutant James W. Steele, Topeka ; mustered in as Adjutant.
Quartermaster Luther A. Thrasher, Topeka; mustered in as
Quartermaster.
Commissary John Johnston, Topeka; mustered in as Com-
missary.
Sergeant-Major George G. Gunning, Leaven worth; mustered
in as pvt. ; pro. 1st Sergt. Oct. 28, 1868 ; pro. Sergt.-Maj.
Nov. 12, 1868.
APPENDIX 429
Sergeant-Major John G. Kay, Junction City; mustered in as
pvt. ; pro. Sergt. Jan. 1, 1869; pro. Sergt.-Maj. April 8,
1869.
Quartermaster Sergeant Francis M. Brown, Topeka; mus-
tered in as pvt. ; pro. Q. M. Sergt. Dec. 29, 1868.
Commissary Sergeant William Mather, Topeka; mustered in
as pvt. ; pro. Com. Sergt. Dec. 29, 1868.
Hospital Steward Gamaliel J. Lund, Topeka; mustered in as
Hospital Steward.
Chief Bugler William Gruber, Leavenworth; mustered in as
pvt. ; pro. bugler Oct. 28, 1868 ; pro. chief bugler Nov.
13, 1868.
Chief Bugler Enoch Collett, Franklin ; mustered in as pvt. ;
pro. bugler Oct. 28, 1868 ; pro. chief bugler Mar. 6, 1869.
Veterinary Surgeon George Davidson, Topeka; mustered in
as pvt. ; pro. Vet. Surg. Dec. 3, 1868.
COMPANY A
Captain Allison J. Pliley, Topeka; mustered in as Capt. Oct.
20, 1868.
First Lieutenant Benj. D. Wilson, Topeka; mustered in as 1st
Lt. Oct. 20, 1868.
Second Lieutenant Raleigh C. Powell, Topeka ; resigned, and
res. accepted Jan. 5, 1869.
Second Lieutenant Joseph Beacock, Topeka; mustered in as
2nd Lt. Mar. 23, 1869.
COMPANY B
Captain Charles E. Reck, Topeka; mustered in as Capt. Oct.
23, 1868.
First Lieutenant Henry H. McCollister, Topeka ; mustered in
as 1st Lt. Oct. 28, 1868.
Second Lieutenant Charles H. Champney, Topeka; mustered
in as 2nd Lt. Oct. 23, 1868.
COMPANY C
Captain Charles P. Twiss, Topeka; mustered in as Capt. Oct.
26, 1868.
First Lieutenant Walter J. Dallas, Topeka; mustered in as
1st Lt. Oct. 26, 1868.
Second Lieutenant Jesse E. Parsons, Topeka ; mustered in as
2nd Lt. Oct. 26, 1868.
430 KANSAS IN THE SIXTIES
COMPANY D
Captain John Q. A. Norton, Topeka; mustered in as Capt.
Oct. 26, 1868.
First Lieutenant John S. Edie, Topeka ; mustered in as 1st Lt.
Oct. 26, 1868.
Second Lieutenant Charles H. Hoyt, Topeka ; mustered in as
2nd Lt. Oct. 26, 1868.
COMPANY E
Captain Thomas J. Darling, Topeka; mustered in as Capt.
Oct. 26, 1868.
First Lieutenant Win. B. Bidwell, Topeka; mustered in as 1st
Lt. Oct. 26, 1868.
Second Lieutenant Charles T. Brady, Topeka ; mustered in as
2nd Lt. Nov. 7, 1868.
COMPANY F
Captain George B. Jenness, Topeka; mustered in as Capt.
Nov. 4, 1868.
First Lieutenant DeWitt C. Jenness, Topeka ; mustered in as
1st Lt. Oct. 27, 1868.
Second Lieutenant John Fellows, Topeka ; mustered in as 2nd
Lt. Oct. 27, 1868.
COMPANY G
Captain Charles Dimon, Topeka ; mustered in as Capt. ; pro.
Maj. Oct. 30, 1868.
Captain Richard D. Lender, Topeka ; mustered in as 1st Lt. ;
pro. Capt. Nov. 4, 1868.
First Lieutenant Richard D. Lender, Topeka; mustered in as
1st Lt. ; pro. Capt. Nov. 4, 1868.
First Lieutenant Myron A. Wood, Topeka ; mustered in as 2nd
Lt. ; pro. 1st Lt. Nov. 4, 1868.
Second Lieutenant Myron A. Wood, Topeka; mustered in as
2nd Lt. ; pro 1st. Lt. Nov. 4, 1868.
Second Lieutenant Henry C. Litchfield, Topeka; mustered in
as pvt. ; pro. 2nd. Lt. Nov. 4, 1868.
Second Lieutenant James W. Brown, Fort Scott ; mustered in
as pvt. ; pro. 1st Sergt. Oct. 30, 1868 ; pro. 2nd Lt. Mar. 23,
1869.
APPENDIX 431
COMPANY H
Captain David L. Payne, Topeka; mustered in as Capt. Oct.
29, 1868.
First Lieutenant Mount A. Gordon, Topeka; mustered in as
1st Lt. Oct. 29, 1868.
Second Lieutenant Robert M. Steele, Topeka ; mustered in as
2nd Lt. October 29, 1868.
COMPANY I
Captain Roger A. Ellsworth, Topeka; mustered in as Capt.
Oct. 29, 1868.
First Lieutenant James J. Clancy, Topeka; mustered in as
1st Lt. Oct. 29, 1868.
Second Lieutenant James M. May, Topeka; mustered in as
2nd Lt. Oct. 29, 1868.
COMPANY K
Captain Milton Stewart, Topeka ; mustered in as Capt. ; pro.
Maj. Mar. 23, 1869.
Captain Emmet Ryus, Topeka; mustered in as 1st Lt. ; pro.
Capt. Mar. 23, 1869.
First Lieutenant Emmet Ryus, Topeka; mustered in as 1st
Lt. ; pro. Capt. Mar. 23, 1869.
First Lieutenant Charles H. Hallett, Topeka; mustered in
as 2nd Lt. ; pro. 1st Lt. Mar. 23, 1869.
Second Lieutenant Charles H. Hallett, Topeka; mustered in
as 2nd Lt. ; pro. 1st Lt. Mar. 23, 1869.
Second Lieutenant Robert I. Sharp, Manhattan ; mustered in
as pvt. ; pro. 1st Sergt. Dec. 21, 1868 ; pro. 2nd Lt. March,
23, 1869.
COMPANY L
Captain Charles H. Finch, Topeka ; mustered in as Capt. Oct.
29, 1868.
First Lieutenant Henry E. Stoddard, Topeka; mustered in as
1st Lt. Oct. 29, 1868.
Second Lieutenant Winfield S. Tilton, Topeka ; mustered in as
2nd Lt. Oct. 29, 1868.
COMPANY M
Captain Sargent Moody, Topeka; mustered in as Capt. Oct.
29, 1868.
KANSAS IN THE SIXTIES
First Lieutenant James Graham, Topeka; mustered in as 1st
Lt. Oct. 29, 1868.
Second Lieutenant James P. Hurst, Topeka; mustered in as
2nd Lt. October 29, 1868.
INDEX*
Abrams, A. W., 363, 365, 366
Adams, Captain, and bis command
167
Adams, F. G., 200
American Emigrant Company, 308-
311, 314
Anderson County, 2, 8
Anderson, G. W., 241
Anderson, M., 306
Anderson, Major T. J., 134, 207,
208, 240, 246; and Mrs. Ander-
son, 241
Andrews, Lieut.-Col., and the Third
Brigade, 28, 30, 31
Anthony, Susan B., 196
Arickaree, battle of the, 293
Armes, Captain, and his command,
260-262
Arthur, J. M., 5
Atchison, David, 16
Atchison, Topeka and Santa Fe
Railroad, 356-358
Augur, Gen. C. C., 265
Ayers, Captain, 58
Babcock, C. W., 23
Bailey, Judge, 238-240, 242, 244
Baker, Capt., 298
Baker, T. H., 244
Ballard, D. E., 208, 246
Ballard, Lieut., 59
Bankhead, Col., 296
Banks, A. E., 19
Banks, General, 109, 112, 114
Barker, Captain, 260, 261
Barker, B. A., 200, 306
Barker, Sergeant, 58
Bartholow, E. M., 243
Barton, J. T., 6
Bassett, Lieut.-Col., 54, 56, 58, 69,
74, 88, 91
Bates, Col., 28
Battle flags, 233
Beck, Eobt., 22
Beecher, Lieut., 293, 294
Bell, John, 18
Beman, H. T., 208
Benteen, Colonel, 159-162, 164, 173,
174, 176
Benton, Colonel, 125
Black Flag, Confederate policy of
the, 102, 106, 108, 117, 121, 126
Blair, Lieut.-Col. Charles W., 22,
37, 38, 143, 145, 148, 153-155,
157, 159, 301-303; (Gen.) 306
Blair, Major, 91
Blinn, Mrs., and child, Indian cap-
tives, 325, 326, 332
Blood, Jas., 6
Blood, N. C., 6
" Bloody Crossing, "52
Blunt, General, and his command,
54-63, 68, 69, 71-87, 90, 91, 95-
99, 138, 141-143, 146, 148-154,
158, 168, 172, 173, 176, 177, 202
Blunt, Jas. G., 6
Boonsboro and Cove Creek, engage-
ment at, 62
Boston Mountains, battle of the.
72
Bowker, W. E., 200
Bowman, Capt., 200
Brant, E. C., 22
Breckenridge, John C., 18, 194
Bridgens, T., 201
Brown, General E. B., 140
Brown, Fred, 6
Brown, John, 16
* The Legislative rolls, maters of regimental officer*, etc.. contained In the appendix
are not included in this index.
433
434
INDEX
Brown, John F., 362
Browning, Hon. O. H., 308-311,
313
Brumbaugh, J. D., 200
Buchanan, James, President, 16, 17
Buffalo hunt, see Game and hunt-
ing in Kansas
Buford, — , 16
Burlingame, Ward, 247
Burnes, Jim, 16
Burnett, J. C., 6
Burns, Col., and his command, 145
Burr, Hon. C. C., of New Jersey,
190, 192
Bums, J. T., 6, 207
Butterfield, Miss, 241
Cabell, General (ConfedJ, 95, 96,
99, 100, 135, 164
Cameron, Captain, 74
Camp Beecher (Wichita), 322
Camp Douglas, Chicago, 190, 191
Campbell, Major, 71
Canby, General, 43
Cane Hill, battle of, 68
Carlton, Gen., 270
Carney, Governor, 142-145, 201,
337
Carpenter, Col., 295, 296
Carthage, cavalry fight at, 65
Case, Miss, 241
Catherwood, Colonel, 99
Chariot, Major C. S., 142
Chase, Geo., 241
Chase, Miss Isabel M. (Mrs.
Samuel J. Crawford), 239
Cherokee Neutral Lands, 307, 312
Chesebrough, Ellsworth, 200, 201
Chitwood, Major, 208
Chivington, Major, 43
Cholera at Fort Harker, 260
Churchill, General, 121, 122, 124,
129, 130, 133
Clarke, Sidney, 200, 309, 312
Clay, Clement C., 187
Clayton, General, 108
Cloud, Colonel (or Major) W. F.,
22, 38-40, 62, 69, 74, 78, 80, 87-
94, 96, 99, 102, 142, 143, 157,
174, 201, 207, 224, 246
Cobb, Nelson, 201
Coffey, Colonel (Confed.), 92, 94
Coleman, Captain, 67, 77
Colton, Col., and his command, 20,
145
Conkey, Captain, 66, 77
Connor, James, 281
Cook, Lieut., 332
Cooke, General, 232
Cooper, General (ConfedJ, 55, 57,
58, 95-99, 135, 198
Cooper, Sergeant, 57, 58
Cordley, E., 244
Cosgrove, Lieut., 58
Cove Creek, see Boonsboro and
Cove Creek, engagement at
Cox, John T., 200
Crawford, Hon. Samuel J., arrived
in Kansas, 1; practised law in
Garnett, 2; elected to first State
Legislature, 6; experiences on
hunting party, 9-14; Chairman
of Com. on Counties and County
Lines, and on Military Com., 20;
as officer in war, 20 et seq. • as
Governor, 138, 200, 203, 237, 238,
339; Message of, 205; Marriage
of, 239-242; Thanksgiving Proc-
lamation of, 282; calls for State
troops against Indians, 297; re-
signs Governorship, 321; settle-
ment of State and Indian claims
by, 353 et seq.
Crocker, A., 6
Cross Hollows, engagement at, 55
Cross, Lieut. Samuel K., 21, 51
Cummings, J. F., and Mrs., 241
Curtis, Gen. S. E., and his com-
mand, 54, 74, 138, 141-155, 165,
168, 172, 173, 175-179
Custard, Serg. A. J., 266
Custer, General, 325, 326, 329, 331-
334
Davis, Jefferson, 186-189
Davis, Gen. Jeff. C., 39
Dawson, Hon. John S., 285
Dean, Eev. Henry Clay, of Iowa,
190, 192
Deitzler, General, and the Fourth
INDEX
435
Deitzler, General — Continued
Brigade, 28, 30, 143, 144, 148,
150
Democratic National Convention,
Chicago, 1864, 186-193, 195, 196
Dennison, Ex-Gov., of Ohio, 194
" Desert, Great American," 230,
231
Dimon, Charles, 208
Dockery, General, 113, 122, 123
Dodge, General C. M., 223
Dodge's battery, 150
Donavan, Jack, 295
Doniphan, Col., 16
Douglas, Stephen A., 18
Drake, Colonel, 118
DuBois's battery, 31, 35
Dug Springs, battle of, 27-30
Dutton, W. P., 6
Dyer, Colonel, 362
Dynamite used in farming, 372-
374
Earhart, D., 244
Ege, A. G., 201
Eighteenth Iowa Infantry, 54, 116
Eighteenth Kansas Cavalry, 260,
261, 281
Eighth Missouri, 80
Eighty-third U. S. Colored In-
fantry, 102-108, 120, 121, 126,
128, 131, 137, 138
Elder, H. P. P., 21
Eldridge, S. W., 22
Eleventh Kansas Cavalry, 150, 152,
223, 266, 267
Eleventh Kansas Infantry, 54, 69,
75, 80
Elliott, Major, 260, 261, 325
Elmore, Mrs., and Miss, 241
Emery, J. S., 243
Emmert, D. B., 19
Emmert, J. S., 281
Emporia Normal School, 245
Estelle, Judge, of Omaha, quoted,
375
Ewing, Colonel, 69
Ewing, General, 139, 165, 180
Fagan, General (Confed.), 118,
139, 141, 147, 155, 157, 159, 161-
165, 169-171, 174, 178-180, 198
Fifteenth Kansas Cavalry, 150,
152, 223, 224
Fifth Missouri Volunteers, 28
Fiftieth Indiana Regiment, 120,
121, 130
First Arkansas Infantry, 96
First Brigade, see Sturgis's First
Brigade
First Colorado battery, 150
First Iowa Infantry, 25, 28, 31, 32,
80
First Kansas battery, 54
First Kansas Infantry, 28, 31
First Missouri Volunteers, 28, 31,
32
First U. S. Infantry (Plummer's),
28, 31
Fisk, General, 140
Fisk, Major, and his command, 45,
68, 69, 91
Fitzgerald, Miss, 241
Fletcher, John, 240, 241
Fletcher's, Colonel, infantry regi-
ment, 180
Forman, J. W., 6
Forsyth, 25
Forsyth, Colonel J. W., 289
Forsythe, Col. George A., 293-296
Fort Larned, threatened by Indi-
ans, 48-51
Fort Scott, 157, 163
Fort Smith, 101, 134
Forty-third Illinois Regiment, 123
Foster, R. C., 6
Fourteenth Kansas Cavalry, 97,
104, 116
Fourteenth Missouri Cavalry, 77
Fourth Brigade, see Deitzler 's
Fourth Brigade
Fourth Iowa Cavalry, 25, 174, 175
Fremont, John C., 29, 38
Frost, General, 80
Fuller & McDonald, 314
Gale, E., 244
Game and hunting in Kansas, 8-
14
Gano, General, 96, 98, 198
436
INDEX
Gardner, Captain, 59, 60, 66, 67,
73, 74
Garnett, Kansas, 2
Gause, Colonel, 122, 123
Gilmore, J. R., of New York, 188,
189
Gilpatrick, Major, 105
Glover, Geo. W., 254
Gonzales, William E., 372
Goodnow, I. T., 200
Graham, Eobt., 6
Granger, Gordon, 35
Grant, General TL S., 176, 217, 249
Gravely, Colonel, 140, 141
Gray, — , 281
Great Bend, 51
Greeley, Horace, quoted, 3
Green, Captain, 156, 158, 161, 162,
164
Green, Gen. (Confed.), 37, 38
Green, N., 254
Greene's brigade, 121
Greenwood, Col., 256
Greer, John P., 5
Gregg, Col. H. H., 370
Grenfell, Colonel, 188, 191
Griffith, W. E., 6
Griswold, H., 201
Grover, Captain, and his command,
150, 152
Hagan, Col., and his command,
145
Hairgrove, Asa, 201
Hamilton, Captain, 325
Hancock, Major General W. S.,
232, 250-252, 261, 264, 278-280,
340
Hanway, Jas., 6
Harlan, Hon. Jas., 308-311, 313
Harney, Gen. W. S., 265, 277
Hart, — , scout, 328.
Harvey, Jas. M., 207
Haskell, John G., 208, 246
Hawthorn, General, 122, 123
Hayes, Colonel, 119
Hazen, General, 317, 318, 328-330
Henderson, Senator J. B., 265
Herron, General, 54, 74, 75, 77-87,
90, 91, 95
Hindman, General (Confed.), 54,
72-87, 90
Hiner, Sergeant J. P., 13, 158, 159,
174
Hippie, Samuel, 6
Hoffman, General, 232
Hoffman, S. E., 6
Holcombe, James P., 187
Holliday, C. K, 243
Holman, Judge, 238-242
Holmes, General (ConfedJ, 95
Honey Springs, engagement at, 95
Hopkins, Captain, and his com-
pany (Hopkins 's battery), 59,
61, 62, 70, 80, 81
Hopkins, Major, 156, 158, 161, 162,
164
Houston, S. D., 6, 244
Howe, Colonel, 46
Howe, Julia Ward, 196
Hoyt, Geo. H., 289, 306
Hubbard, E. M., 6
Humphrey, Jas., 249
Hunting, see Game and hunting
in Kansas
Huntress, O., 254
Hutchinson, Kansas, 10
Hutchinson, W., 6
Her, Col., and Ms command, 145
Immigration Society, 226
Indian claims, settlement of, 360
et seq.
Indian land frauds, 299 et seq.
Indian troubles in Kansas, 204,
208, 223, 224, 231, 232, 250-281,
287-298, 316-336, 340, 341
Ingalls, Anna Louisa Chesebrough,
211-214
Ingalls, John J., 5, 19, 201, 214,
349
Inman, Win. M., 200
Jackman's, Colonel, brigade, 155,
166, 167
Jaques, Col. James F., 188, 189
Jenkins, Major, 323
Jenkins's Ferry, battle of, 119-
135
Jenness, Captain, 260, 261
INDEX
437
Jewell, Colonel, 71, 72
Johnson, Andrew, 195, 234, 235,
291, 308
Johnson, Fielding, and Mrs., 241
Johnson, Lieut., 51, 58, 333
Joy, James F., 309-311, 313, 314
Judson, Colonel, 77, 78
Julian, George W., 307, 312
Kansas, laws of Territory, 2, 3,
16; legislature of Territory, 5;
Constitution of State, 6, 15, 17;
struggle of Free-State and Pro-
slavery factions in, 6, 7, 15-17;
drought of 1860 in, 7, 8, 17;
boundaries of Territory, 7; ad-
mission to Union, 18, 19; State
government inaugurated, 19 ;
State University, 23, 243; under
martial law, 143, 144; volunteers
furnished by, 204, 205, 208-210;
reorganization of Militia, 207,
225; literature distributed con-
cerning, 215, 227; immigration
into, 227, 228, 338; Agricultural
College of, 243
Kansas and Neosho Valley Bail-
road, 233
Kansas Pacific Railroad, 230, 247,
249, 284, 356-358
Kellam, C. C., 240; and Mrs. Kel-
lam, 241
Kelley, Harrison, 207, 208, 246
Kennedy, Dr., and his sister, 241
Kestler, John, 268
Kingman, S. A., 5, 201, 248
Lakin, Mr., 241
Lamb, Josiah, 5
Lane, James H., 16, 19, 39, 144,
148, 149, 207, 235, 236
Langhorne, Captain, and his com-
mand, 167
Lawrence, Col., 240; and Mrs.
Lawrence, 241
Lawrence, Judge, 307
Leavenworth, J. H., 267, 272
Lee, A. L., 201
Lee, Lieut., 58
Lee, Rev., 239
Leland, Cyrus, 208, 247
Lesueur's, Captain, battery, 127,
128
Lexington, Mo., 39
Liggett, J. D., 243
Lillie, G. H., 6
Lincoln, Abraham, 18, 182, 186,
190, 191, 195-197, 210-214, 219-
221
Lindsay, John G., 21
Lines, C. B., 243
Little Blue, battle of the, 146
lavermore, Mary A., 196
Livingston, Tom, bushwhacker, 65
Lockhart, Lieut. John O. ( Con-
fed. )r capture and report of,
125-128
Lockwood, R. R., 200
Log Town, skirmish at, 89
Lowe, D. P., 249
Lykins County, change of name
of, 20
Lynde, Major Isaac, 41
Lyon, General, and his command,
25-33, 36, 37
Maclean, Lieut.-Col. L. A., 170
MacVicar, Peter, 201, 301, 303,
306
Malone, Frank, 269
Manning, Lieut., 63-66
Marcy, General, 137, 138, 270
Marmaduke, Colonel, of Missouri,
188, 191
Marmaduke, General (Confed.), 54,
68-73, 78, 82-86, 108, 130, 135,
139, 141, 142, 147, 155-165, 168,
170, 171, 174, 179, 180, 191, 198
Martin, Dr. and Mrs., 241
Martin, John A., 6, 207
Massey, A. B., 22
Mathews, Captain, 73
May, Caleb, 5
McAfee, J. B., 246
McBratney, Robert, 200
McCahon, James, 249, 284
McClellan, Gen. George, 192, 193,
195-197
McClelland, C. B., 6
McClure, Capt., 38
McClure, J. R., 201
438
INDEX
McCracken, Nelson, 200, 201
McCulloch, Gen. (Confed.), 26-29,
31-33, 36
McCulloch, W., 6
McCune, A. D., 6
McDonald, Col. Emmet (Confed.),
62, 63, 75-77, 86
McDowell, Wm. C., 6
McParland, N. C., 359
McGrew, James, 200
Mclntoah, Colonel, and his com-
mand, 97
McKean, Wm. B., 314
McKever, Brig. Gen. Chauncy, 258
MeLain's battery, 150, 151
McManus, John, 314
McNeil, General, and his command,
140, 164-168, 172, 173, 175, 176,
178
Meade's, J. B., ranch on White
Water Eiver, 9
Medary, Samuel, Governor of Ter-
ritory, 5
Medicine Lodge Council, 264, 265,
274, 287, 288
Miami (Lykins,) County, 20
Middleton, J. A., 5
Miles, Colonel, 362
Miller, Judge, of Lawrence, Kan-
sas, 241
Miller, ,,'udge, of Ohio, 191, 192
Mine Creek, battle of, 157
Missouri and Kansas Territory, 2,
3, 15, 16
Missouri, Kansas, Texas Railroad,
233, 356
Mitchell, D. P., 243
Mitchell, Col. (or Gen.) E. B., 20,
22, 32, 40, 45
Mobley, E. D., 291
Montgomery, Colonel, and his com-
mand, 145
Montgomery, Miss, 241
Moonlight, Col., 201
Moore, Captain, 51
Moore, Dr., 293, 294
Moore, E., 6
Moore, Jerry H., 371
Moore, Lieut. Horace L., 59-61, 64-
66, 73, 330-335
Moore, Major, 260-262
Morgan, Mrs., Indian captive, 327,
334
Mtorton, A. E., 21
Morton, Captain, 66, 67
Moscow, skirmish at, 113
Mulligan, Col., 38, 39
Munro, Mrs., 241
Murdock, Col., and his command,
145
Mnirphy, Sergeant Patrick, 100
National Union Convention, Balti-
more, 1864, 194
Navajo Indians, pursuit of, 47
Naylor, J. C., 370
Neal, Henry, 22
Newson, Mr., 241
Newtonia, battle of, 54, 177
Nichols, Colonel, and his command,
155, 167
Nineteenth Kansas Cavalry, 325,
326, 328, 331, 332, 334, 335
Ninth Kansas Cavalry, 54, 67, 77
Ninth Wisconsin Infantry, 54, 123
Nye, Wm., 254
Old Fort Wayne, battle of, 56
Oliver's, Dick, ranch on Lee 'a
Creek, 91
Osage Indians, 13, 204, 271, 280,
281, 299-303, 305, 307, 309
Osage Trust and Diminished Be-
serve Lands, 299
Osterhaus's, Major, battalion of
Missouri Volunteers, 31
Otis, Misses, 241
Paddock, G. W., 243
Palmer, L. B., 6
Parks, P. S., 6
Parrott, Marcus J., 16, 19
Parsons, General, 80, 121-124, 129,
130
Pattee, E. L., 22
Payne, Albert, 51
Pea Eidge, battle of, 54
Pendleton, George H., of Ohio, 193,
197
Perkins,-— ,281
INDEX
439
Perry, John D., 255
Perry, Wm., 6
Phelps, Colonel John E., 156
Phillips, Colonel, 140, 141, 159-
162, 164, 173, 174, 176
Phillips, W. A., 16
Pierce, Major A. R., 174
Pipher, John, 244
Pleasonton, General, 141, 144, 146-
154, 159, 162, 168, 172-176, 202
Pliley, A. J., 295, 323
Plummer, see First U. S. Infantry
Poison Springs, battle of, 117, 124-
127
Pomeroy, S. C., 16, 19, 20, 212,
245, 348, 349
Pope, Gen., 39
Porter, E. J., 6
Potts, Capt., 298
Prairie d'Ane, battle of, 111, 114
Prairie Grove, battle of, 76
Prentice, Thaddeus, 200
Presidential election of 1864, 185
et seq.
Preston, H. D., 6
Price, Fay, 67
Price, Gen. (Confed.), 26, 27, 31,
32, 39, 108, 109, 111, 115-118,
123, 130, 133, 135, 139-147, 149-
155, 157-159, 163, 164, 166-173,
175-181, 197, 198, 201-203
Price, John M., 249, 284, 285
Price, Lieut., 261
Eabb's, Captain, Second Indiana
battery, 54, 61, 68-70, 80, 81, 94,
96, 99, 100, 113, 116
Railroad-building, 224, 230, 233,
234, 247, 249, 255-258, 263, 268,
284, 301, 302, 312, 355-359
Rains, Gen. (Confed.), 27
Rankin, Col. and Mrs., 241
Rankin, J. K., 208, 265, 276
Raymond, Henry J., of New York,
194
Reaser, J. G., 244
Rebel Yell, 76, 79, 113
Remiatee, Adjutant, 155
Remington, S. R., 240; and Mrs.,
241
Republican party in Kansas, 3
Reynolds, Matt. G., 362
Reynolds, Rev., 239
Rice, General Samuel A., 110, 112,
114, 119-121, 123-125, 130, 131
Richardson, Colonel, 77
Riggs, S. A., 249, 284, 285
Ritchie (Col. or Gen.) John, 6, 53,
240; and Mrs. Ritchie, 241
Robinson, Charles, 16, 19, 243, 337
Robinson, Mrs. Charles, 16
Root, Dr. J. P., 19, 92, 237, 240,
265
Roseerans, General, 140, 145, 165,
172, 175-177
Ross, Col., and his command, 145
Ross, Edmond G., 6, 208, 236-238,
245, 265, 309, 313, 345
Russell, Capt., and his company,
32, 34, 53, 59, 60, 72, 76
Sac and Fox Lands, fraudulent
sale of, 314, 316
Safford, Jacob, 200
Safford, Judge and Mrs., 241
Salomon, General, and his com-
mand, 54, 78, 81, 111, 118, 119,
130
Sanborn, General, 140-142, 153-155,
175-177, 265
Sanders, W. R., 201
Schermerhorn, John F., 364
Schofield, General, 54, 91
Schofield, Major J. M., 36
Sehreyer's, Lieut. Gustavus, com-
pany, 33, 34
Sears, T. C., 243
Second Arkansas Cavalry, 155
Second Artillery, 28
Second Brigade, see Sigel's Sec-
ond Brigade
Second Colorado Cavalry, 150, 152,
156, 161
Second Indiana battery, see Rabb 'a
battery
Second Kansas Cavalry, 39, 40, 45,
54-63, 69-72, 75, 76, 78, 80, 87,
88, 90, 91, 93, 96, 97, 99-103,
116, 156, 161, 174; Company A,
45, 58; B, 59; C, 45, 46, 58; D,
440
INDEX
Second Kansas — Continued
45, 59, 60; E, 59, 60; F, 58; G,
58; H, 59; I, 58; K, 59.
Second Kansas Colored Infantry,
see Eighty-third U. S. Colored
Infantry.
Second Kansas Infantry, 22, 25,
27, 28, 31, 33-35, 37-39
Second Missouri Volunteers, 28
Second Wisconsin, 80
Seventeenth Kansas Regiment, 223
Seventh Cavalry, 260, 261, 325, 326,
329, 331, 332
Seventy-ninth Colored Infantry,
116, 117
Seymour, Horatio, of New York,
186, 188, 189
Shelbina, battle of, 37
Shelby, Col. Joe (later General,),
Confed., 54, 71, 75-79, 85, 86,
110, 135, 139, 141, 147, 150-152,
155, 157, 163, 164, 166-171, 179-
181, 198
Sheldon, Mr. and Mrs., 241
Sheridan, General, 287, 288, 290,
293, 296, 297, 315-320, 324-330
Shoemaker, Miller & Co., 247
Shoemaker, R. M., 255-257
Sibley, Major H. H., and bis com-
mand, 41-45
Sigel, Col., 25, 32, 36, 37
Sigel's Second Brigade, 28, 30-32
Signer, J. H., 6
Simpson, B. F., 5, 346
Sixteenth Kansas Cavalry, 150,
152, 223
Sixth Kansas Cavalry, 54, 71, 77,
116
Sixth Missouri Cavalry, 96, 99, 100
Slavery in Kansas, 3, 6, 7, 15-17
Slayback's regiment, 166
Siemens, Colonel, and his command,
164
Slough, Colonel, 42
Slough, J. P., 6
Smith, — , 281
Smith, General A. J., 140, 142, 144,
147, 176, 177, 255, 257, 259, 264
Smith, Jake, 241
Smith, General Kirby (Confed.),
108, 114, 118, 130, 133, 135, 198
Snoddy, Colonel, and his command,
145
Snow, — , Indian agent, 271
Soldiers — real and political, 84,
85
Souders, George N., 187
Sparks, W. A. J., 359
Sprigga, Win., 200, 249
Squires, Zack, 3
Stand Watie and his Indians, 53,
92-95, 135-137
Stanley, Capt., 25, 27, 362
Stanley, Henry M., 278
Starrett, W. A., 243
" State Row," Topeka, 203
Steamboats, capture of, 89-91
Steele, Capt. Fred., 27; General,
108-119, 130, 135, 139, 145, 179
Steele, J. W., 240, 241
Stevens, Robt. S., 314
Stiarwalt, J., 6
Stillwell, Jack, 295
Stinson, S. A., 6
Stokes, Ed., 6
Stone, Lucy, 196
Stotler, Jacob, 237
Stover, Major E. S., 288
Stover's howitzers, 58, 59, 62, 69,
80, 81, 89, 90, 96
Stowe, Harriet Beecher, 196
Stringf ellow, — , 16
Sturgis, Gen., 39
Sturgis, Major, 35, 36
Sturgis 's, Major, First Brigade,
28 30
Sully, General, 288, 290, 296, 318
Swallow, J. R., 200, 306
Sweeney, Gen., 25
Tappan, General J. C., 122
Tappan, Col. S. F., 265
Taylor, General Dick (Confed.),
108, 198
Taylor, Hon. N. G., 265, 275
Teller, Hon. Henry M., 354, 359
Tenney's, Captain, battery, 80
Tenth Cavalry, 261
Tenth Illinois, 80
Tenth Kansas Infantry, 54, 80, 210
INDEX
441
Terry, Gen. A. H., 265, 277
Thacher, 8. O., 6, 201, 243
Thayer, General, 108-110, 113, 116,
119, 130, 133, 134, 136, 138, 142
Third Brigade, see Andrews ' Third
Brigade
" Third House," the, 207
Third Indian Eegiment, 80
Third Iowa Infantry, 37
Third Kansas battery, 365
Third Missouri Volunteers, 28
Third Wisconsin Cavalry, 54, 66,
77, 97, 104
Thirteenth Kansas Infantry, 54,
80
Thirty-sixth Iowa, 118
Thirty-third Iowa Eegiment, 129
Tholen, Wm., 200
Tholen's, Capt., company, 32, 33
Thompson, — , attacked by Indians,
268
Thompson, Ed. D., 22
Thompson family, murdered by
Indians, 268
Thompson's brigade, 166
Torrey, Miss, 241
Totten 's battery, 25, 27, 28, 31-33,
35
Tough, Captain, 76
Townsend, P. H., 5
Trudell, Pete, 295
Tuttle, Miss Helen E. (Mrs. I. H.
Holman), 239
Twelfth Kansas Infantry, 54, 119,
136
Twentieth Iowa, 81
Twenty-ninth Iowa Eegiment, 123,
125
Twenty-seventh Wisconsin Eegi-
ment, 129
Tyler's, General (or Colonel),
brigade, 155, 169
TJpdegraff, W. "Vf ., 19
Vail, Et. Eev. Bishop T. H., 239
Vallandigham, C. L., of Ohio, 186-
189, 192
Veale, Colonel, and his command,
145, 241
Vore, Major (Confed.), 97
Walker, Thaddeus H., 289
Walker's division of Texas in-
fantry, 129, 130, 135
Ward, Miss, 241
Ware, Eugene F., 370
Warren, G. F., 6
Wattle's, Colonel, battalion of
Indians, 80
Waul's Texas brigade, 129
Webber's Falls, fight near, 136
Weer's, Colonel, brigade, 80
Wells, Colonel, 121
Westport, battle of, 150
Wetts, William, 10
Wever, J. L., 243
White, Miss, Indian captive, 327,
334
Whittenhall, Captain, 46, 50, 51
Whittier, John G., 238
Wichita, Kansas, 9, 10, 321, 322
Wickersham, Colonel, 77-80
Williams, Col., 37, 38, 116
Williams, Lieut., 270
Williams, E. L., 5
Williams, W. G., and John, 269
Wilson's Creek, 27; battle of, 30,
157
Winans, N. T., 208
Winehell, J. M., 6
Wines, Chaplain, 92
Wood, S. N., 249
Woodworth, W. L., 244
Wright, John, 6
Wright, T. S., 6
Wright, W. W., 240, 247
Wrigley, B., 6
Wyandotte State Convention, 5
York, Senator A. M., 348
The State House Offices AVI11
Clo.ed. —/
Be
Tribute to the memory of Governor
Samuel J. Crawford, soldier and state
builder, was paid yesterday in a
proclamation by Governor George H.
Hodges, eulogizing- his services to the
state of Kansas and directing the clos-
ing of all state house offices this after-
noon and that all state officers attend
the funeral in a body. The state house
will be draped in mourning; the flags
on the state house and all public build-
ings will be placed at half mast for
thirty days in respect to the memory
of the distinguished' Kansan.
The funeral services from the fam-
ily home at Fifth and Harrison streets
at 2:30 o'clock this afternoon will be
in charge of Lincoln Post No. 1,
G. A. R.. and of the Scottish Rite
Masons. The Masons will conduct the
ritual service at the home. The G. A.
R. ritual service will be given by the
members of Lincoln Post and taps
sounded at the interment in Topeka
cemetery.
The active pall bearers will be Judge
A. W. Dana, W. A. S. Bird, Charles H.
Sessions, J. F. Jarrell, A. A. Rogers
and Dr. C. B. Reed. The honorary pall
bearers are Thomas Ryan. P. I. Bone-
brake, A. \V. Knowles, \V. A. L. Thomp-
son, Senator Charles Curtis, Col. J. N.
Harrison, Col. George \V. Veale, John
R. Mulvane, Col. H. L. Moore of Law-
rence and B. F. Fleniken.
H. L. Rhoades, reader of the First
Christian Science church of Topeka,
will officiate, and Irene Homer will
sing.
The governor's proclamation follows:
GOVERNOR'S PROCLAMATION.
Executive Department,
Topeka, Kan., October 22, 1913.
In the death of Samuel J. Crawford,
the third governor of this state, the
last of the great war governors, has
ed away.
N'i man has had a more prominent
part in the formative period of our
y. Born In Indiana, April 10,
he came to Kansas in 1859 and
I the practice of law. He
1 member of the first state legis-
uml resigned his seat to go to
the front as a cantain of the Second
Kansas Volunteer infantry. His mili~-
••va.s an honorable or/
and resulted in his being appointer"/
brigadier general by brevet for n./
/
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