Carroll County, Missouri - The whole text, 1881 (part 8 of 19)

Hundreds of persons visited the river, and the sight presented was one never forgotten. On the Saline and Lafayette shores crowds daily watched the strange sights to be seen. Houses floated down the current almost intact; stable roofs sailed by on one of which, it is remembered, were some chickens, some of which crowed pluckily and lustily as they were swept away. In one instance a straw-stack was borne away on which were some hogs, and when the queer craft passed DeWitt the porkers were plainly seen rooting away or lazily sleeping the time away.

The flood came up quite suddenly, and many people were unable to remove their stock, but very many thought there was no serious danger and neglected to care for their propert}"^ until it was too late, and hundreds of their cattle and hogs and some horses and mules were lost. At "Shanghai," or Hill's Landing, Mr. Ely and others drove a lot of stock to a high mound back of the place, and kept them there till the waters subsided, bringing feed in boats from the main land.

Some idea of the extent of this great overflow may be conceived when it is known that the water extended from the foot of the bluff at Carrollton, where the foundry now is, to Lafayette county, a distance of twelve miles. It was possible to row a boat from Carrollton to Waverly. All over the Sugar Tree Bottom, where now are fertile farms and well improved lands, houses and other buildings, there were then waters vast and deep.

its duration. The waters rose and fell. One day the water would, rise a few inches^ and the next or within the next two or three days, it would fall correspondingly. Some old settlers state that on the 20th of June the water reached its greatest flood, and began to fall.

One case of drowning occurred. A gentleman named Prather, whose Christian name it is believed was Thomas, was drowned in the upper part of the bottom, out on the prairie. He was riding through the water, engaged in gathering up his cattle, when his horse stepped into a deep ditch and threw him into water beyond his depth, and he was drowned. The body was recovered in a few days and buried.

An effort was made by politicians to create as enthusiastic a presidential campaign in 1844 as had been in 1840, but it was in vain. Henry Clay and Theodore Frelinghuysen were the candidates of the whigs for president and vice-president, and James K. Polk and Geo. M. Dallas were the democratic nominees. There was not a very considerable interest manifested in the campaign in this county, owing in part to the destructive flood of that summer, about whose devastations and in repairing them the people seemed more concerned than about politics. The vote in this county was as follows:

In 1846, the war between the United States and Mexico broke out, the annexation of Texas being the alleged cause of the declaration of war by Mexico against the United States in April, and the attack on American soldiers by Mexicans the ground of the declaration of war on the part of the United States shortly afterward.* As in all other wars through which Carroll county had passed since her organization, she bore her full part in this.

At this time the army, under Gen. Taylor, in what is now south-western Texas, was in a perilous situation, and Gen. Gaines, then at New Orleans, being apprised of this fact, and believing any action of the authorities at Washington would be too late to afford relief, requested of the different states lying west of the Mississippi the aid of volunteers. Governor

Edwards promptly responded by sending several hundred men tp St. Louis, who upon their arrival, found that they were to have their trouble for their pains, inasmuch as the government had annulled the order of Gen. Gaines, and placed him under arrest for issuing it. Somewhat mortified, but not discouraged, at this unexpected turn of affairs, the men returned to their homes. They were joked at by their neighbors for a time, but all this soon passed away.

Under the act of congress, of the 13th of May, President Polk called on Governor Edwards for a regiment of volunteers, to join the "Army of the West," then under command of Col. Stephen W. Kearney, of the 1st U. S. dragoons, in an expedition against Sante Fe and other Mexican possessions, in the territory belonging to Mexico, and known as New Mexico. Corps of mounted volunteers were speedily organized, and early in June began to arrive at Ft. Leavenworth, the appointed rendezvous. By the 18th of the month the full complement of companies to compose the first regiment had arrived from various counties and the regiment was fully organized. It was denominated the First Regiment of Missouri Mounted Volunteers, and was composed of eight companies. Company A was from Jackson county, Capt. Waldo commanding; company B from Lafayette, Capt. Walton; company C, Clay, Capt. Moss; company D, Saline, Capt. Reid; company E, Franklin, Capt. Stevenson; company F, Cole, Capt, Parsons; company G, Howard, Capt. Jackson; company H, Callaway, Capt. Rogers. The field officers were elected by the companies, and afterward duly commissioned. There were two candidates for the colonelcy of the regiment; A. W. Doniphan, of Clay county, and Col. Price, of Howard. Both candidates made speeches. Doniphan spoke first; Price replied. The latter had been a lieutenant-colonel in the Florida war, and in the opinion of a great many, had not won very great renown, to speak mildly. When he alluded in his speech to the fact of his former service, some one in the crowd cried out, "you had better not mention that!" Doniphan was chosen colonel by a nearly unanimous vote. After an exciting contest between C. F. Ruff and Wm. T. Gilpin, for the office of lieutenant-colonel, the former was elected, and Gilpin was chosen major of the regiment.

To the First Missouri Mounted Volunteers were afterward joined Capt. Hudson's company, the Laclede Rangers, two companies of artillery, from St. Louis, in charge of Captains Weightman and Fisher, and under command of Major Clark, and two companies of infantry, under Captains Murphy and Augney. Besides these, were Kearney's dragoons, and these commands composed the members of the famed Doniphan's expedition.

After a brief period spent in drawing arms, drilling, and disciplining the men, the expedition prepared to set out for Santa Fe, and the other Mex- ican .posts in New Mexico. This expedition is known to every school child, and the first regiment reflected great credit on the people of Mis- : souri. Col. A. W. Doniphan, its worthy commander, is yet living, an honored citizen of Richmond, Ray county.

Early in the summer of 1846, Hon. Sterling Price, a member of congress from Missouri, resigned his seat and was appointed by President Polk to command another regiment of volunteers from Missouri to re-enforce the array of the west. This regiment consisted of companies from the counties of Boone, Benton, Carroll, Chariton, Linn, Livingston, Monroe, Randolph, Ste. Genevieve, and St. Louis.

On the 4th of July, 1846, an old-fashioned celebration of Independence Daj' was had at Carrollton. The patriotism of the people was stirred to its depths, and the question of forming a company to take part in the war then pending was agitated. Indeed at this meeting all the plans were laid for forming this company. In the latter days of July the organization of the company was perfected at Carrollton.

Richard Williams, who had been a captain in the militia, and was at the time a citizen of Wakanda township was chosen captain. B. F. White, an attorney of Carrollton, was elected 1st lieutenant; Joseph Smith, 2d lieutenant; Alex. D. Rock, 3d lieutenant; Alfred Caldwell, orderly sergeant. In a few days the company left the county for Ft. Leavenworth, where the regiment was to be organized. The men left in squads for the fort as they could make their arrangements, and the entire company did not march out from Carrollton in a body with much pomp and circumstance, amid the flutter of handkerchiefs, the waving of banners, and the plaudits of the multitude, as many other companies did, and as was perhaps proper. The last squad thatJeft was presented with a handsome United States ^ag, made by the ladies of Carrollton, and delivered to the brave volunteers by Mrs. R. D. Ray and Miss Sarah Prosser, the latter making the presentation address. Mr. Daniel Hoover, the ensign of the company, received the flag and promised, on behalf of the company, to return it with honor, and to remember in the hour of battle whose fair hands had wrought it.

The flag itself was made of cambric, and there being no silk in the Carrollton stores, of the colors required, the ladies procured ribbons and, covered the banner. Mrs. Ray, Miss Prosser, Mrs. Rees, Mrs. Tull, and other ladies did the work. Owing to the peculiar nature of the -task, and the short time given them, it was not completed until 1 1 o'clock at night, and the presentation ceremonies were at the residence of Judge Ray, then on Benton street, a block west of the square. The members of the company were as good as their word, and brought back from the war the flag bullet-rent and storm-stained, but with no taint of dishonor about it. Afterward during the civil war it was carried by Captain Hoover's company of

On the 3d of August, it is stated, the Carroll company left the county. Soon after the arrival of the men at Ft. Leavenworth, the organization of the regiment was eflfected. Col. Switzler (history of Missouri, p 262), says that notwithstanding President Polk had nominated Sterling Price as a suitable person to command the second regiment, many of the volunteers thought he ought to be chosen by their suffrages, if he commanded at all, and accordingly, in deference to their opinion, an election was held. Sterling Price was elected colonel and D. D. Mitchell lieutenant-colonel. The Carroll county company was designated company K. The following is the muster roll off the company as furnished by Mr. H. V. Shirley, of Leslie township, who has carefully preserved it for years :

Privates. - R. A. Austin; James Austin, mortally wounded at Taos, Feb. 4, and died Feb. 6, 1847; Thos. A. Austin, elected 3d lieutenant after the battle of Taos; Peter Austin, John Austin; George Asher, died Sept. 17, 1846; Robt. M. Berry, James Berry, Chas. W. Berry, Elias Barbee, Bailor Banks, Samuel Barrett, Edward J. Brown (from Saline county), Charles Bailes, Milton Cooley; H. S. Claudis, discharged May 1, 1847; Thos. S. Cross;* Jackson Coater, died in hospital at Santa Fe, May 3, 1847; Fleming Coats; Seth De Masters, died at the grazing camp below

Those marked with a star (*) are said to have been among those who served with Doniphan. A dagger (f) denotes those at present residing in the county.

Santa Fe, April 14, 1847; Foster De Masters, David De Masters; John N. Dunlap, promoted to assistant surgeon of the regiment, March, 1847; Joseph Dixon, appointed cook and farrier, Feb. 20, 1847; David Evans,* Devi Flowers,* Martin Glaize, Charles Hancock, Wm. Hill, James Hill, Pleasant Hill; Wm. J. Hatfield, killed by Me.xicans and Indians in tlie Taos mountains, Jan. 15, 1847; Daniel Hoover, flag-bearer or ensign, appointed 4th sergeant. May 2, 1847; Isaac Harmon; Christopher Hamlin, died in hospital at Santa Fe, March 31, 1847 ; Newton J. Halsey, Larkin Latham, James L. Lowthain, James S. Mahaney, John Markle; Oliver P. Markle, died at Santa Fe, March 6, 1847; George McClary, appointed 3d corporal, March 23, 1847; Kenian Newsome; Pleasant Newton, died at Santa Fe, March 31, 1847; Chas. A. Perkins, Thos. Phillips, Geo. P. Phillips, James M. Partlow, F. A. Redwine, Levi P. Redwine, Wm. II. Richardson, Walter O. Squires, John Squires, Alexander Shell,* John T. Snoddy;* Ervin Smith, died at Abique, Jan. 1, 1847; Edwin Stewart, di.scharged for physical disability; Hiram Slandley,* William Turner, Joel Turner, James Trotter, Dudley Thomas; Erastus Trible, died Jan. 12, 1847; John S. Thompson, transferred to Co. M; Alexander Wile}'', died in quarters at Santa Fe, March 29, 1847; John J. Wyncoop, appointed corporal. May 25, 1847; Edward Whitworth, killed in battle with the Indians, at the grazing camp. May 26, 1847; Morgan Watkins, Burnoit Woods; Williim W. White, discharged by reason of physical disability; Robert Walker, promoted to adjutant; Joseph Waters,* John Winfrey; Hardwick Hardwick, died in hospital at Santa Fe, May 1, 1847 ; John Whitworth.

About the 15th of August, Price's regiment took up the line of march from -Ft. Leavenworth to Santa Fe, following the same road taken by Kearney and Doniphan. The men stood the march well, and met with marfy adventures of interest. The trip will never be forgotten by those who made it, as long as they live. The country through which they passed was wild and new, the life was new, and the experience novel. They encountered more or less privations and discomforts, but invariably made merry over every mishap. When the fierce storms that sweep over the wild western prairies blew down the tents of their camp, which frequently happened, the boys crawled out of their beds and laughed at the circumstance. They were heroes and Mark Tapleys as well.

No Indians or other hosliles were met with on the route, although a sharp look-out was kept for them, and there were no alarms of any consequence. The men were well mounted, but for the most part were very indifferently armed, their weapons being old-fashioned, flint-lock, smoothbore "Harper's Ferry" muskets, with bayonets. They had no sabres, no pistols. In fact, they were but mounted infantrymen; and yet they did good service.

At last, on the 28th of September, the 2d Missouri arrived and was quartered at the quaint old adobe-built city of Santa Fe, then a place of 5,000 or 6,000 inhabitants, comprising a population cosmopolitan in character, although mostly Mexicans, Spaniards and half-breed Indians. A few days before Gen. Stephen Kearney had left the city for California, and Col. Doniphan, with the Ist Missouri, had departed for Mexico. A detail of 100 men from Price's regiment, consisting of ten men from each company, was immediately dispatched to join Doniphan. It is said that this detail was commanded by Capt. Hudson. The Carroll county men who joined Doniphan are noted elsewhere.

The Second Missouri went into quarters in various public buildings in Santa Fe, and the men enjoyed the situation immensely. Life in the city in that day was gay and frolicsome, after the most approved Mexican and Spanish fashion, and the soldiers soon adapted themselves to it, and partook bountifully of it. Monte banks were everywhere in full blast, dancehouses abounded, and kindred establishments of every sort were to be found on every hand. All of these houses were well patronized, and by all classes. It was no uncommon sight to behold, among the patrons of a monte bank, a merchant, an hidalgo or large landed proprietor, an official of the city government, a -padre or priest, iu his robe and with his crucifix, an American soldier, a muleteer or mule driver, a prostitute, a Peon or Indian serf.

At the dance houses, fandangoes were nightly held, participated in by motley groups of soldiers, citizens, officers, and the abandoned of both sexes. The wildest revels were indulged in at times, and often the orgies closed with a tragedy when Santa Fe was under Mexican rule; but these endings were rare during the American occupation. The music was not of the best^ - indeed, it was the rudest - but it put life and mettle in the heels of the dancers, and was wild and weird, as was the assemblage. Quite often, however, the scene was graced (?) and the antics hallowed (?) by the presence of a jolly padre^ whose eyes twinkled merrily as they gazed upon the revelry, and rolled solemnly as he invoked a on revel and revelers.

The women of Santa Fe - the dark-eyed senoras'"' in Spanish - were, for the most part, dark of complexion and light of love. To state it mildly, they swore and were improper. With the most of them their impropriety was of a professional character; with the rest it was a trait. They were not like many of their sex in colder and purer climes, who prefer

But yet, there was this excuse to be made for them, that they were reared amid ignorance and vice of every sort, and knew no better than to become depraved and degraded.

About two weeks after their arrival at Santa Fe, Capt. Williams' company and the company from Livingston county, commanded' by Capt. W. Y. Slack, afterward a confederate brigadier-general, who fell at Pea Ridge, were sent up to the little vilage of Abique (pronounced Ab-i-ku), on the Rio Chaima, a tributary of the Rio Grande. Abique was a small place, whose population was composed of Mexicans and Pueblo Indians. The town was exposed to the raids of the fierce and merciless Navajo Indians, and, as the American authority had been established in New Mexico, Col. Price sent up these two companies to protect the town and its people. Capt. Williams took command of the post.

The inhabitants of Abique were very friendly and peaceably disposed toward the soldiers, and the most amicable relations were established between the people and the garrison. Here the Carroll county men remained until about the 20th of December. During their stay, many of the soldiers were attacked with the measles, and when the companies were ordered away were left behind. Some of them died of disease, and it was reported that others were massacred by the Mexicans, in the uprising which followed soon after.

When Gen. Kearney captured Santa Fe, he proclaimed the supremacy of the American authority, and. set up a provisional government. Silas Burt was appointed provisional governor. The Mexicans did not greatly relish the new order of things, and stimulated by the. priests, who imagined that American rule in New Mexico meant the extinction of the Cathlic religion, and encouraged by certain of Iheir former officials, who knew that their days of extortion, profligacy, and corruption would forever pass if the "Yankees" maintained their authority - so stimulated and so encouraged, the people rose in revolt and insurrection against those whom they deemed their oppressors and "infidel usurpers." The situation of Col. Price and his men was extremely critical. They were hundreds of miles from support, in an enemy's country, in the midst of winter, and almost without the means of communication with their friends. Yet Col. Price was equal to the emergenc}', as was clearly and thoroughly demonstrated.

The rebellion was led by Gen. Tofoya, Chavez and Montaya. Their forces were chiefly organized in the district northwest of Santa Fe, the town of Taos (pronounced Tow'-us or Touce), being the headquarters of the insurgents. One of the first outbreaks occurred at Gov. Bent's Mill, near Taos. The governor and some others were killed. Wm. J. Hatfield, a member of the Carroll county company, was also killed, either at Bent's Mill or at another near by. The insurrection rapidly spread and assumed alarming proportions. It seemed as if the Americans would be overthrown, and either exterminated or driven from the country. Tofoya at the head of a strong force was marching directly on Santa Fe, and all

About the 24th of January, Col. Price called in all his companies. The companies at Abique made a hurried march to Santa Fe, where they were joined by their comrades from the other outposts. As before stated the sick were left behind. In a short time, the regiment, with Fisher's St. Louis battery and a company of dragoons, marched to meet the Mexicans who were threatening Santa Fe. Fisher's battery consisted of four howitzers and was manned almost exclusively by Germans.

The first evening out the Mexicans were encountered, 2,000 strong, at a little hamlet called Canada ( pronounced Can-ya-tha). Price's forces, all told, numbered not more than 500 or 600 men. The Mexicans, under Tofoya, Chavez and Montaya, were posted on a high ridge, commanding well the country in front and running directly across the American line of march. They were well armed with muskets and. other infantry and cavalry arms, but were without artillery.

Col. Price marched his command up within striking distance, along the. road, which, it has been indicated struck the ridge at right angles, and then deployed his forces in front of the enemy, forming his line in an arroyu, or dry bed of a stream, running parallel with and at the base of the mountain range, on the crest of which the enemy w'ere posted. Fisher's battery unlimbered and opened on the Mexicans with shell. The effect was insignificant, and Col. Price ordered the Missourians to "charge!" Away they went up the steep hilside, receiving the fire of the Mexicans at short range without halting or quailing, and pressing gallantly on,y) the crest of the hill and to victory. The Mexicans not relishing a bayonet encounter, nor a hand-to-hand fight, retreated with great precipitation and jn confusion. Two thousand men had been put to flight by five hundred.

When the fight was over several Mexicans lay dead on the field. The Americans lost a number wounded, but none killed outright. Col. Price himself was slightly wounded. Some guns and other munitions of war were taken by the victors. The fight closed at nightfall. The Americans remained on the field that night, apprehensive of an attack, but by the next morning not a Mexican was in sight.

The march was resumed and the enemy was again reached on the 29th, posted in the little hamlet of El Embudo. Fisher's battery was brought up and shelled the town. A charge followed participated in by the mounted men and the infantry. The Mexicans were routed with a loss of several killed and wounded, while the Americans lost but two men, neither of whom was from Carroll county. The superiority of American over Mexican courage was made manifest in the Embudo fight, and the Missouri boys won a deserved good name for pluck and efficiency. The

Mexicans fled over a range of hills and mountains, and Col. Price led his men in pursuit with much alacrity. On the mountains there was much snow,>and the soldiers suffered considerably. Beds were made of pine boughs, and on them, and under their army blankets, the volunteers lay contentedly down to sleep, with pickets well out, while -

There was little murmuring, or complaint. A soldier's life, well followed, is one of privation, peril, inconvenience, and discomfort generally, and the men knew this and were content. Dr. Peter Austin, then a jolly, lighthearted stripling, but now a grave and profound M. D., of the city of Carrollton, who has furnished much of the details of this chapter, still retains a vivial recollection of those nights on the spurs of the Rocky mountains, in the da3's when he was a smooth-fSced soldier laddie under Sterling Price and the stars and stripes, against the copper-faced " Greasers."

About the first of February, Col. Price's little army descended the mountains and entered the valley of Taos. The command camped in the village » of San Fernandez, a suburb of the city of Taos. The onh'^ inhabitants of the place when the Missourians entered it, were women and children, and a few old men. All of the able-bodied male population were in the city of - Taos in Tofayo's army', which had there determined to make a final stand. There was, of course, great alarm and trepidation in San Fernandez, when the dreaded " Americos" took possession of the place, but without good cause or adequate reason. Nobody was hurt, and the time was chiefly spent in preparing for the work of the following day.

At sunrise on the morning of February 3, 1847, Col. Price drew up his force in front of the Mexican position at Taos. The Mexican^were well protected and in admirable position to withstand and repel an assault from an enemy ten times the number which then confronted them. Taos is situated on a plain, and the town was surrounded by a high and strong wall built of adobcy or sun-dried bricks. On the side where Col. Price made his attack, stood a large Catholic church, the outer wall of which formed a part of the fortification which enclosed the town. This church was well filled with soldiers, the walls being well pierced with loop-holes for musketry. Fischer's battery opened the fight by a well directed fire against the walls, which it was desirous to shatter and dismantle, in order that an entrance into the town might be effected. The cannonade was kept up until about noon, the balls at every discharge striking the wall fairly and truly in what seemed its most vulnerable parts, but without the desired effect. The walls would not fall.

Col. Price at last became weary of this ineffective mode of attack, and determined, by the advice of his officers, and the consent of his own mind, on an assault. Early in the afternoon a storming party was formed, a part of the men being provided with axes, and at the word, the men dashed jrallantl}'^ forward, receiving the Mexican fire for hundreds of yards. The Carroll company was in line immediately in front of the Catholic church, and when the wall was reached was against that building. The axes were plied vigorously, and holes were soon made in the church sufficiently large to admit of hand grenades being thrown through them upon the Mexicans. A brisk musketry fire was kept up on the top of the walls, and seldom did a Mexican show his head that it was not hit. At last, breaches were made that admitted the brave Missourians, and through them they went cheering and shouting, and firing and bayoneting.

As the Americans entered Taos on one side, the Mexicans began leaving on the other. A body of horseman was sent around the walls and fell upon the fugitives, cutting down many of them, and making prisoners of ' many more. Firing was kept up "in the streets of the town, and from behind buildings for some time, but at last the Mexicans were vanquished, their tri-colored flag went down, and the stars and stripes floated in its stead.

In the assault on Taos the Carroll county company lost two of its best men - Alfred Caldwell, the orderly sergeant, and James Austin a private. Several were wounded whose names it has not been possible to learn. The company was commanded by Lt. White. A day or two after leaving Sante Fe Capt; Williams was so badly aflected with a sortof rheumatism in his knee that he was compelled to return. There was great dissatisfaction among the men over his conduct, which many attributed to cowardice. It is proper to say that very many always believed Capt. Williams to be a brave man, and that the charges against him were unfounded; but his company was dissatisfied with him, and he resigned and was succeeded by Lt. White, who became the captain of the company and brought it back to Carroll county when its time had expired.

Hundreds of prisoners were taken at Taos; and among them were Tofaya and several of his officers. A large amount of military stores was also captured. The victory' was a glorious one, and complete, for it ended the war, substanially, so far as New Mexico was concerned.

A short time after the Taos fight, Tofaya and about a dozen other of the leaders of the insurrection were tried by drum-head court martial and. hung at San Fernandez. All of them had taken the oath of allegiance to the American government, and had violated it in the basest and most treacherous manner, thereby forfeiting their lives. They met their deaths very heroically, and elicited from the Americans not only admiration for their bravery, but pity for their fate. It seemed indeed a grevious thing to take their lives after they had surrendered, and so it was; but it was actually necessary to resort to the extremest measures to repress the insurrection and visit the severest punishment upon its leaders in order to prevent its repetition. The ignorant, depraved Mexicans, treacherous by nature and murderous almost by instinct, could not be made to live under American authority by any other motive than fear. It was necessary to "strike terror into their hearts" by meting out to them the most rigorous punishment for their perfidy. i

The loss of the Mexicans in three engagements of Canada, El Embudo, and Taos in killed was 282; the wounded and prisoners were never counted. Col. Price's loss was fifteen killed and 47 wounded. The only ofiicer killed on the American side of any distinction was Major Bur- ' gwine, a North Carolinian, an officer of dragoons, but who served with Fischer's artillery on the expedition to Taos, and was killed at the battle at that place. His remains were afterwards exhumed, taken to Ft. Leav- . en worth and re-buried in the following September.*

The 2nd Missouri soon returned to Sante Fe, where it remained on garrison duty until the 9th of August following. During the stay of the regiment here many of the men died of pneumonia and other diseases. There was no further fighting. An alarm was given one night and the men "fell in" on the plaza expecting an attack, but it was caused by the entrance into the town of a train of btirros or donkeys laden with supplies of some sort. These burdens were placed upon two poles which were attached to the animals like shafts. One end of these shafts dragged on the ground and two or three hundred of them made a great clatter, which was mistaken for the noise made by a division of Mexican cavalry' in motion !

On the return of the soldiers to Santa Fe a number of priests were arrested and confined on a charge of inciting the rebellion. None of them were ever severely punished. They took their imprisonment good naturedly, played cards and cracked jokes with their guards, and made the best of everything. On the 9th of August the regiment took up the march for Ft. Leavenworth, where they soon arrived and were mustered out. The 100 men that served with Doniphan came home via New Orleans. It was but a short time after Company K was mustered out until the men were at their Carroll county homes, receiving a joyous and cordial welcome from their friends and families, and receiving congratulations on every hand for the excellent record they had made for themselves and for the honors they had bestowed on the county.

Not long after they had gotton back home the men were given a formal reception at Carrollton. A barbecue was held in a grove where the Baptist church now stands, and a large concourse of people attended. Speeches were made, and Captain White returned the flag of the company to the ladies who had made and presented it to them. Miss Sarah Prosser, on behalf of the ladies, received the banner, but very gracefully handed it back to the captain, saying, "We return this banner to the brave hands which so nobly upheld it and sustained it in the day of battle." The flag was then taken to the court house and placed in one of the offices for safe keeping. Miss Prosser, it will be remembered was the lady who presented the flag to the company in the first instance. She was afterward married to the gallant Capt. White, the company's commander. She is now a resident of St. Louis, a widow for the second time.

In the presidential canvass of 1848, General Zachary Taylor, of Louisiana, was the whig candidate for president, with Millard Fillmore,'' of New York, for vice-president. The democrats nominated Gen. Lewis Cass, of Michigan, for president, and Gen. Wm. O. Butler, of Kentucky, for vice-president. There was no very unusual excitement -in this year, in Carroll county. The democrats carried the county, but by a reduced majority. Gen. Taylor's prominent connection with the Mexican war, just closed, caused many democratic votes to be thrown for him. The vote stood:.

The whigs made strenuous efforts to carry the state of Missouri for ^'01d' Rough and Ready," as they called Gen. Taylor; but they failed to do so, although they were successful in the general result. The vote in Missouri was, for the democratic electors, 40,077 ; for the whig electors, 32,671; majority for the democrats, 7,406.

The Jackson Resolutions

Early in the year 1849 there began a series of discussions in the Missouri Legislature concerning the slavery question, or rather the power of congress over slavery in the territories. On the 15th of January Hon. C. F. Jackson, senator from Howard, afterward governor of the state, introduced into the legislature a series of resolutions as follows:

Resolved by the General Assembly of the State of Missouri: That the F ederal constitution was the result of a compromise between the conflicting interests of the states which formed it, and in no part of that instrument IS to be found any delegation of power, to congress to legislate on the subject of slavery,* excepting some special provisions, having in view the prospective abolition of the African slave trade, made for securing the recovery of fugitive slaves; any attempt, therefore, on' the part of con- gress, to legislate on the subject, so as to affect the institution of slavery in the states, in the District of Columbia, or in the territories, is, to say the least, a yiolation of the principles upon which that instrument was founded.

2. That the territories, acquired by the blood and treasure of the whole nation, ought to be governed for the common benefit of the people of all the states, and any organization of the territorial governments, excluding the citizens of any part of the Union from removing to such territories, with their property, would be an exercise of power by congress inconsistent with the spirit upon which our federal compact was based, insulting to the sovereignty and dignity of the states thus affected, calculated to alienate one portion of the Union from another, and tending ultimately to disunion.

3. That this general assembly' regard the conduct of the northern states on the subject of slavery as releasing the slave-holding states from all further adherence to the basis of compromise fixed on by the act of congress of March 6, 1820; even if such act ever did impose any obligation upon the slave-holding states, and authorizes them to insist upon their rights under the constitution ; but, for the sake of harmony, and for the preservation of our Federal Union, they will still sanction the application of the principles of the Missouri Compromise to the recent territorial acquisitions, if by such concession future aggressions upon the equal rights of the states may be arrested and the spirit of anti-slavery fanaticism be extinguished.

4. The right to prohibit slavery in any'^ territory belongs exclusively to the people thereof, and can only be exercised by' them in forming their constitution for a state government or in their sovereign capacity as an independent state.

5. That in the event of the passage of any act of congress ponflicting with the principles herein expressed, Missouri will be found in hearty co-operation with the slave-holding states, in such measure as may be deemed necessary for our mutual protection against the encroachments of northern fanaticism.

The foregoing resolutions were known as the "Jackson Resolutions," from the name of their mover, but their real author was Hon.W.B. Napton, of Saline county, latterly a judge of the supreme court, who admitted the fact to the writer.

Space is given to an account of the Jackson resolutions in this volume from the fact that, at the time, they engaged a large share of the attention of the leading politicians and . prominent men of the county. The representative of the county voted for them, but the sentiment of his constituents was not unanimous in their lavor. There were many who thought their passage untimely, unwise, and that they foreboded eventuallv a dissolution of the union.

Col. Thomas H. Benton, Missouri's distinguished senator, was especially opposed to the resolutions. He thought (and probably' correctly, too) that thc}^ were aimed at him, and designed to deprive him of his seat in the United States senate, which he had held for nearly thirty consecutive years. The last section commanded him to act in accordance with the resolutions, the spirit of which he had often vigorously opposed.

Col. Benton At Carrollton

Col^ Benton appealed from the action of the legislature to the people of Missouri, and canvassed the state against the Jackson resolutions. He made one speech at Carrollton at the court house. The meeting was well attended, the tame of " Old Bullion " alone being sufficient to secure a large audience in that day. Col. Benton's speech in Carrollton was long remembered by those who heard it. He maintained that the spirit of nullification and treason lurked in the Jackson resolutions, especially in the fifth; that they were a mere copy of the Calhoun resolutions offered in the United States senate February 19, IS-IT, and denounced by him (Benton) at the time as fire-brands, and intended for disunion and electioneering purposes. He said he could see no 'difference between them, except as to the time contemplated for'dissolving the union, as he claimed, that Mr. Calhoun's tended directl}^ and the Jackson resolutions ultimately to that point. Col. Benton further argued that the Jackson resolutions were in conflict with the Missouri Compromise of 1820, and with the resolutions passed by the Missouri legislature, February 15, 1847, wherein it was declared that " the peace, permanency and welfare of our national union depend upon a strict adherence to the letter and spirit " of that compromise, and which instructed the Missouri senators and representatives to vote in accordance with its provisions. In conclusion. Col. Benton warned his hearers that the Jackson resolutions were intended to mislead them into aiding the scheme of ultimately disrupting the national union, and entreated them, to remain aloof from them.

Notwithstanding Col. Benton's powerful efforts, and the prestige he possessed,*the anti-Benton democrats in the county were in the majority, and at the ensuing election 'an anti-Benton man was chosen to the legislature, which body, however, although democratic, chose a whig, Hon. H. S. Geyer, of St. Louis, as Benton's successor.

The Floods Of 1851

In 1851 there was a general season of floods and high waters throughout the county and country. The June rise in the Missouri was somewhat extensive, although not destructive. Crops were badly injured in many localities. After the flood subsided there was considerable sickness in the bottom lands.

Presidential Election Of 1852

The leading event of the year 1852 was the Presidential election. The two political parties in the county were the democrac and whig parties, the latter being slightly in the majority. Gen. Winfield Scott was the nominee of the whigs, and Gen. Franklin Pierce the democratic candidate. The freesoilers had a ticket in the field headed by John P. f^ale, of New Hampshire, but it cut only an insignificant figure in the campaign. This campaign will ever be regarded as a memorable one, since it was the last one in which the old whig party, as a party, presented a presidential candidate. Gen. Scott was quite well and favorably known throughout the country. He was a hero of three wars and commander-in-chief of the U. S. army during the war with Mexico. He had been a brave and gallant soldier, who had shed his blood for Kis country. British lead was in his body, which he carried with him to his grave. But however great Gen. Scott was as a soldier, he was an utter failure as a politician and as a candidate. His first speech in the campaign, to a deputation of foreigners, in which he declared that he ^^loved the rich Irish brogue and the sweet German accent," made him the butt of his opponents, and a subject of general ridicule, while his position on both sides of the Missouri compromise question, the tariff question, and other measures regarded as of moment, effectually killed his case before the American people, and he was overwhelmingly defeated by his opponent, a comparatively obscure New England senator and a brigadier general of volunteers in the Mexican war. Twenty-eight years thereafter Gen. Scott's namesake, Maj. Gen. Winfield Scott Hancock, was as decidedly, although not so overwhelmingly defeated in a contest for the presidency.

Very soon after the election of this year the whig party fell to. pieces. From its ruins sprang the American, or ''know-nothing" party, of which most of the old line whigs became members, and for whose candidates most of them v'oted. But for many years there were those - and some of them were in Carroll county, who called theirselves whigs, swore by Henry Clay and Daniel Webster, and believed in free banks, and a protective tariff'.

The Drouth Of 1853

In 1853 there was a universal and very harmful drouth in this portion of Missouri. No rain fell for some weeks. Streams and wells were dried up ; stock suffered greatly, for pastures were poor or worthless, and water was scarce; fields of crops were rendered actuall}' worthless. A drouth in that day bore harder upon the people than one does now. Then there were no railroads to bring in provisions and supplies, and unless their neighbors' barns and cribs were filled, they had to suffer or go to some far away Egypt for com.

In the presidential election of 1856, when Buchanan and Breckenridge were the democratic candidates, and Fillmore and Donelson, the nominees of the American or know nothing party, Carroll county went democratic as usual, and by an increased majority. When the whig party went down very many of its members joined the democratic party, in preference to uniting with the know nothings, whose cardinal principles were opposition to the holding of office by foreigners and Roman Catholics. "Americans must rule America," was their watchword. The party was a secret political one, had stated secret meetings, signs, grips, passwords, etc. Long afterward many politicians found it convenient to deny that they had ever belonged to the " Know Nothings." The result of

During The Troubles In Kansas

From the first of the troubles in the territory of Kansas, until the last, to whether or not there should be slavery in the state upon its admission into the Union, the people of Carroll took a part therein upon the pro-slavery side . For some time many of those interested in the institution of slavery, believing their interests to be in danger, and that the end would jnstify the means, had been members of a secret political order looking to the preservation, perpetuation, and extension of the "peculiar institution." This organization had many members in this county, and three or fouf lodges or "camps." These were in communication with other "camps" in other states, and performed an important part of one division of the work for which the order was created.

This organization had its hailing signs, its grips, its passwords, and was near to kin and auxiliary to the famous Knights of the Golden Circle. It did what it could to make Kansas a slave state. Many of its members, as well as some other citizens of the county who were not members, went regularly to Kanaas and voted every time a territorial legislature was to be chosen or a constitution adopted, and as regularly returned to their Missouri homes after the election! But the free-soilers of the north were pursuing the same tactics, and there was that sort of excuse, if it be lawful to call it an excuse. Sharpe's rifles and brass cannon were bought with the proceeds of northern church collections, and sent in charge of men who would use them "to consecrate the soil of Kansas to freedom," as the northern abolition sentimentalists e.xpressed it, and there was a great deal of fraud and other wrong perpetrated b}' both the pro-slavery and freesoil factions.

In the fall of 1855, Col. Stephen Stafford left the county, at the head of 30 or 40 men, to take part in the "settlement(.^) of Kansas." The members were well armed - probabl}' to protect themselves from the wild beasts of the forest(!) - and well equiped. They marched directly to the Wakarusa, a small .stream east of the town of Lawrence, where they found a large body of pro-slavery men encamped to the number of about 3,000.

Many prominent men of Missouri were also at the Wakarusa. Hon. C. F. Jackson, B. F. Stringfellow, Col. John W. Reid, and other gentlemen of equal notoriety and prominence from this state were there and in consultation. Greeley's "American Conflict" says a conference which dictated the action of the prp-slavery men when the Lecompton constitution was planned and determined upon, was held in Jackson's tent, the night before the election of delegates to the constitutional convention.

It is presumed that the Carroll county' men in Kansas did their duty' by their side, while they were there, and voted as early and as often as occasion required and necessity' demanded. They were in no fights or other collisions with the free state forces, and soon the most of them returned to their homes, and to the bosoms of their families, to rest on the laurels they won when doing duty' for old Missouri in " bleeding Kansas."

Gen. Stringfellow, who was then one of the most prominent pro-slavery men in Kansas and in the west, was from Chariton county, and had been prosecuting-attorney for this judicial circuit. He is now, strange to say', a repub- lican, and a believer, with very many of that party, in the " fatherhood of God and the brotherhood of man." His conversion, if it be a conversion, was as sudden and almost as miraculous as that of Saul of Tarsus from Pharisaism to Christianity.

The Drouth Of 1857

The season of 1857 was remarkable for the lon^ drouth that prevailed throughout the country. It was even more severe than in 1853. On the uplands there was great distress. Big Creek was dry. Hurricane was dry, Tater Hill was dry, and Wakanda was very low indeed. Water was hauled for miles for household uses. The bottoms fared only tolerably. In some parts there were good crops raised, notwithstanding the dryness of the season, and the fortunate possessors were wont to boast over their good fortune when talking to their neighbors on the uplands. The latter, in a good-humored way, had chaffed the " bottomites" when they were washed out by the floods, and now it was the turn of the aforesaid men of the river lands to exult.

The comet of this year was unusually large and brilliant, and to many presaged the dry season, and even the civil war that began in 1861. There were those who gazed upon the blazing celestial wanderer with fear and trembling, almost, as it swept athwart the heavens,

" Shaking from its horrid head famine, pestilence, and war," and feeling sure that it caused not only the drouth, but portended other dire evils to the country as well. This was the largest and most brilliant comet ever seen in Carroll county.

From 1860 To The Beginning Of The Civil War

In very many respects the presidential campaign of 1860 was the most remarkable in the history of the United States. Its character was influenced not only by preceding but succeeding events. Among the preceding events were the excited and exciting debates in congress over the repeal of the Missouri Compromise, and the Kansas-Nebraska controvers}-; the passage by the legislatures of various northern states of the Personal Liberty Bills, which rendered inoperative in those states the Fugitive Slave Law; the John Brown raid on Harper's Ferry, Va., in the fall of 1859, and various inflammatory speeches of pfrominent leaders of the Republican and Democratic parties in the north and in the south.

There was the greatest excitement throughout the country, and when It was in full tide the presidential canvass opened. The slavery question was the all-absorbing one among the people. The republican party, which had carried a large majority of the northern states in the canvass of 1856, had received large accessions, and under the circumstance of there being great dissensibn in the democratic party, prognosticating a split, bade fair to elect its candidates. The democratic convention at Charleston, S. C., April 23, after a stormy and inharmonious session of some days, divided, and the result was the nomination of two sets of candidates - Stephen A. Douglas and Hershel V. Johnson for president and vice-president, by the "regulars," and John C. Breckenridge and Joseph Lane, by the southern or states rights wing of the party.

The " constitytional union " party, made up of old whigs, know nothings, and some conservative men of all parties, nominated John Bell, of Tennessee, and Edward Everett, of Massachusetts, on a platform composed of a single line - " The union, the constitution and the enforcement of the laws."

The republican party was the last to bring out its candidates. It presented Abraham Lincoln and Hannibal. Hamblin, on a platform declaring, among other things, that each state had the absolute right to control and manage its own domestic institutions; denying that the constitution, of its own force, carried slavery into the territories, whose normal condition was said to be that of freedom. Epitomized, the platfrom meant hostility toward the extension of slavery, non-interference where it already existed.

It was to be expected that Missouri, being the only border slave state lying contiguous to the territories of Kansas and Nebraska, should be deeply concerned in the settlement of the slavery question. Her people or their ancestors were very largely from Kentucky, Virginia and other slave holding states, and many of them owned slaves or were otherwise %terested in the preservation of slavery, to which institution the success of the republican j^party, it was believed, would be destructive. There were many of this class in Carroll county. Hemp was beginning to be the great staple of the county, and its cultivation depended for profit upon slave labor. There was not only a selfish motive for the friendliness toward the " peculiar institution," but a sentimental one. It was thought that it would be unmanly to yield to northern sentiment of a threatening shape or coercive character. If slavery were wrong (which was denied), it must Jiot be assailed at the dictation of northern abolitionists.

The convass in the state was very spirited. The division in the democratic party extended into Missouri. The democratic state convention nominated Claiborne F. Jackson, of Saline county for governor. The Bell and Everett party ndminated at first Robert Wilson, of Andrew, and on his withdrawal Hon. Sample Orr. Very soon the politicians began a series of maneuvers designed to develop Jackson's views on the main questions before the country, and especially as to which of the two democratic presidential candidates he favored. For a long time the wily Saline county statesman succeeded in evading the question and in defining his position; but at last the Missouri Rej)ubl{ca7i ditiA oXhtr Don^zs or- gans "smoked him out." He announced in a well-written communication that he was for Douglas, because he believed him to be the regular ' and fairly chosen nominee of the party; but at the same time he announced himself in favor of many of the principles of the Breckenridge party. He was called by many who disliked him "a Douglas man with Breckenrige tendencies," "a squatter sovereign on an anti-squatter sovereignty platform," etc.

When Jackson's letter appeared, soon thereafter the Breckenridge men called a state convention and put in nomination Hancock Jackson, of Howard, for governor, and Monroe M. Parsons, of Cole, for lieutenant Governor.

Being encouraged by the feuds in the democratic party, the Bell and Everett men had high hopes of electing their gubernatorial candidate at the August election, and of carrying the state for "Bell of Tennessee" the ensuing November. To this end they did everything possible to foment additional discord and widen the breach between the two wings of their opponents; but they over-did the business. The democrats saw through their tactics, and, agreeing to disagree as to presidential candidates, practically united in the support of C. F. Jackson and Thos. C. Reynolds, at the August election, and triumphantly elected them by a plurality of about 10,000. G. F. Jackson, Douglas Democrat, 74,446; Sample Orr, Bell and Everett, 64,583; Hancock Jackson, Breckenridge democrat 11,415; J. B» Gardenhire, republican, 6,135. Nothing daunted by their defeat in August, the Bell and Everett men kept up the fight for their presidential candidates, and came within a few hundred votes of carrying the state for

It is said that many Democrats voted for Bell because they thought he was the only candidate that could defeat Lincoln. In the October election the republicans had carried Pennsylvania, Ohio and Indiana, and Lincoln's election was almost inevitable. Fusion tickets against the republicans had been formed in New York, New Jersy, and other states, and many thought the Tennessee statesman might be elected after all.

Meantime the canvass had proceeded with unusual vigor in Carroll county. A few, and only a few republicans were know to be in the county, but they received no serious consideration. The important issues of the presidential canvass were almost lost sight of (strange to say) in the contest for representative to the state legislature.

Mr. James A. Pritchard, an old whig, had been elected to the legislature, notwithstanding the county was largely democratic. His personal popularity and his acknowledged ability made him the dread of democratic aspirants for seats in the lower house. In this year he was the nominee of the Bell-Everett party. The democrats nominated Wm. M. Eads, a young lawyer, recently from Kentucky, who had hung out his "Shingle" in Carrollton. By agreement of the two parties joint discussions were had throughout the county. The two candidates spoke 37 times, at as many different places in the county, and the meetings were all well attended. Partisan friends of the contestants accompanied them from place to place, and applauded their tamest utterances and encouraged their every effort. Both branches of the democratic party supported Mr. Eads and he was elected.

was a pronounced and decided union man, became a colonel in the confederate army, (and a gallant officer,) and Mr. Eads, the choice of the democrats, became a captain in the federal or union army. And yet there was nothing inconsistent in the conduct of either of the gentlemen.

At the August election of 1860, the following was the vote of Carroll county for governor according to the records, happily still on file in the office of County Clerk Kirby and, as elsewhere stated, rescued from oblivion and destruction by him:

It is generally believed by those who claim to possess any knowledge of the matter that Hancock Jackson polled a considerable vote in the county, but according to the records, the best evidence, his vote was very insignificant.

It will be noticed that Douglas' plurality was exactly 200, but that he did not have a majority over all the other candidates. It will further be noticed that Lincoln received the votes of three men, from De Witt district, Grand River township. The names of these three men may with propriety here be given. They were Jonas Miller, E. L. Fisher, and A. D. Livingston, Jr. Livingston served in the union army during the war; Fisher was a member of the state militia; Miller was an old settler of De Witt township, and an* old man - too old to perform military duty of any 5ort. Since republicanism has become more popular in Carroll county than it was in 1860 there have arisen divers claimants to the distinction of having been among those " original " republicans who voted for Lincoln in 1860, but the records show that they are frauds. The mode of voting in this state in 1860 was viva voce, and every man's vote was recorded opposite his name. The Carroll county records of the election of 1860 disclose only the names of Miller, Fisher and Livingston as those who voted the republican ticket.

The news of the election of Lincoln and Hamlin was received by the people of Carroll county with considerable dissatisfaction ; but, aside from the utterances of some ultra pro-slavery men, there were general expressions of a willingness to ac^pt and abide by the result - at least to watch and wait. A large number of citizens avowed themselves unconditional union men from the first, and these were men who had voted for Bell, and men who had voted for Douglas, and even men who had voted for Breckenridge. Upon the secession of South Carolina and other southern states, however, many changed their view. Indeed there was nothing certain about the sentiments of men in those days, but one thing - they were liable to change ! Secessionists one week became union men the next, and vice versa. There was withal a universal hope that civil war might be averted.

A majority of the people of the county, it is safe to say, believed that the interests of Missouri were identical with those of the other slaveholding states, but they were in favor of waiting for the development of the policy of the new administration before taking any steps leading to the withdrawal of the state from the federal union. " Let us wait and see what Lincoln will do," was the sentiment and expression of a large number. And they waited. And thus the fall and the month of December, 1860, passed away.

The Legislature Of 1861

On the last day of December, 1860, the 21st general^assembly of Missouri met at Jefferson City. The retiring Governor, "Bob" M. Stewart, delivered a verj' conservative message, taking the middle ground between secession and abolitionism, and pleading strenuously for peace and moderation. He declared among other things that the people of Missouri "ought not to be frightened from their propriety by the past unfriendly legislation of the north, or dragooned into secession by the restrictive legislation of the extreme south." He concluded with a thrilling appeal for the maintenance of the Union, depicting the inevitable result of secession, revolution and war. Many of Governor Stewart's predictions were afterward fulfilled with startling and fearful exactness.

The inaugural of the new Governor, Claiborne Fox Jackson, endorsed the doctrine of his famous resolutions of 1849 - that the interests and destiny of the slave-holding states were the same; that the state was in favor of remaining in the Union so long as there was any hope of maintaining the guarantees of the constitution ; but that in the event of a failure to reconcile the differences which then threatened the disruption of the Union, it would be the duty of the state "to stand by the south," and that he was utterly opposed to the doctrine of coercion in any event. Gov. Jackson concluded by recommending the immediate call of a state convention, in order that "the will of the people may be ascertained and effectuated."

In accordance with the governor's recommendation the legislature, on January 17, passed a bill calling a convention of three times as many members as each senatorial district was entitled to state senators, and appointing February 18 as the day on which they were to be elected, and February 28 the day on which the convention should assemble. Hon. Benjamin Brown,* of Ray county, state senator from this district, and Hon. Wm. M. Eads, the county's representative, both voted for the bill, the 10th section of which contained the following important provison :

No act, ordinance or resolution of said convention shall be deemed to be valid to change or dissolve the political relations of this state to the government of the United States, or any other state, until a majority of the qualified voters of this state, voting upon the question, shall ratify the same .

The author of this section was Charles H. Hardin, then a senator from the Boone and Callaway district, and Governor of Missouri in 1874-6. For it Messrs. Brown and Eads voted. Thus the secession of the state was made an impossibility without the consent of the majority of the voters.

Election Of Delegates To The State Convention

Pursuant to the act of the legislature the election for delegates to the state convention was held Monday, February 18,1861. The candidates from the tenth senatorial district, in which Carroll county was then located, were Robt. D. Ray, of Carroll; George W. Dunn, and Ex.-Gov. Austin A. King, of Ray; James H. Birch, and Rev. A. H. Payne, of Clinton. The district was then composed of the counties of Carroll, Caldwell, Clinton, and Ray. Meetings were held in every county seat and addressed by the candidates, all of whom, with the possible exception of Mr. Payne, avowed themselves in favor of the union and opposed to secession .

The result in the district was the election, by a large majority, of Messrs. Dunn, Ray, and Birch - all pronounced union men - thus indicaU ing the sentiment of the people at that time to be opposed to secession.

The Work Of The Convention

The convention assembled at Jefferson City, February 28, 1861. Sterling Price, of Chariton county, afterward the distinguished confederate general, was chosen president. On the second day it adjourned to meet in St. Louis, where it re-convened March 4, continued in session until the 22d, when it adjourned to meet on the third Monday in December, subject, however, to a call of a majority of a committee of seven. Before adjourning, a series of resolutions were adopted, two of which were of superior importance, and here proper to be noted - 1. Containing the explicit declaration that there was no adequate cause to impel Missouri to dissolve her connection with the federal union. 2. Taking unmistakable ground against the employment of military force by the federal government to coerce the seceding states, or the employment of military force by the seceding states to assail the government of the United States.

It is believe that in these two resolutions the convention reflected the sentiment of a very large majority of the people of the state at that time. Judge Ray, the member of the convention from this county, upon his return home, was warmly commended by the people and press for his course.

The Winter Of 1861

During the months of January, February, and March, 1861, there was great interest manifested in public affairs by the people of the county. A few meetings were held, but no important proceedings were had. The prospect of war was freely discussed, and many prepared for it. A few openly sympathized with the seceded states, but the majority preferred to take no decided steps to aid either side. Many declared that Missouri had done nothing to bring on war, and should do nothing to help it along should one break out. "We are neither secessionists or abolitionists,'^ said they, " and we are neither fanatics or fire-eaters."

If any fighting was done, it was argued, there must be none of it in Missouri, and it was proposed to organize military companies to keep out (of this county, at least,) the forces of both sides. Yet the sentiment of the people was not all one way. Indeed, as there were all kinds of men, so there were all sorts of opinion. The Carrollton Democrat^ then the only newspaper in the county, had two editors, and, singularly enough, they were divided in sentiment. Mr. James O'Gorman was an uncomprising union man; Mr. A. J. Clark was .strenuous in his advocacy of "Southern Rights," and bitter in his denunciation of "Abe Lincoln" and "the North." In the same paper would be found an article denouncing the " South Car-

The legislature having adjourned on the 28th of March, Mr. Eads, the county's representative, returned home in a few days thereafter, and the Democrat newspaper said that his course had been "entirely satisfactory to his constituents, and reflects much credit to himself."

After The Firing On Sumpter

On the i2th of April, 1861, the confederate forces opened fire on Fort Sumpter, in Charleston harbor, and the next day the fort surrendered. President Lincoln, pn the 15th, issued a proclamation calling for "the militia of the several states of the union, to the aggregate number of 75,000, to suppress combinations in South Carolina, Georgia, Florida, Alabama, Mississippi, Louisiana and Texas, too powerful to be suppressed by the ordinary course of judicial proceedings;" "to maintain the honor, the integrity and existence of our national union, and to repossess the forts, places and property which have been seized from the union."

Sib: Your dispatch of the 15th inst., making a call on Missouri for four regiments of men for immediate service, has been received. There can be, I apprehend, no doubt but these men are intended to form a part of the president's army to make war upon the people of the seceded states. Your requisition, in my judgment, is illegal, unconstitutional and revolutionary; in its objects inhuman and diabolical, and cannot be complied with. Not one man will Missouri furnish to carry on such an unholy cru-

C. F. Jackson

The announcement that war had actually begun, while not wholly unexpected, created great excitement in Carroll county. Nothing else seemed to engross public attention but the prospect of civil war. The general sentiment seemed to be in favor of letting the " wayward sisters depart in peace," and against coercion. Many prominent men were pronounced and decided opponents of federal coercion, who, as time passed, became practical federal coercionists themselves.

On the 20th of April a large public meeting was held at the court house at Carrollton. From the Carrollton Democrat of April 27 it is learned that the meeting was called by the citizens " for the purpose of taking into consideration the present state of the country, and expressing their views thereupon. Maj. Chas. Sterne presided over the meeting, and Mr. Ethan Allen* was the secretary. A committee of eight was appointed by the chairman to draft resolutions expressive of the sense of the meeting, which committee was composed of the following gentlemen: Dudley Thomas, John Guilette, R. H. Coats, Dr. B. Bond, Hiram Wilcoxen, John B. Hale, Amos Grow and Peter Huff.

The meeting was addressed by Messrs. R. D. Ray, L. K. Kinsy, W. M. Eads, John B. Hale and Wellington, all of whom, says the published report, " took decided ground against the war policy of President Lincoln, and declared their sympathy with and determination to stand by the southern states as expressed by the resolutions reported from the committee." These. resolutions were as follows:

Resolved. - That we endorse the reply of Gov. Jackson to the requisition of President Lincoln for four regiments from Missouri to make war upon the seceded States.

That, in our opinion, said call of the President is "illegal, unconstitutional and revolutionary," and ought to be' resisted by all the slave States now in the Union.

That those States should not only refuse to furnish any men for any such unholy war, but that they should not permit any army raised in the free States or elsewhere to pass their territory, with the design of invading any of the States now in opposition to the general Government.

That these States should at once put themselves in condition to make good their position and abide by all its consequences, reserving to themselves the right to act in the future as the exigencies may require, or their honor and safety may demand.

That, impressed with the conviction that the war of the President is wickedly designed to be a war of the sections, and that the fate of Southern institutions and Southern independence is involved in the issue, we pledge ourselves to abide by the section to which we belong and to share Its future destiny.

That, under this impression, we would recommend the re-assembling of our State Convention, with instructions to act in the premises, in such manner as the interest and honor of the State may demand and, if necessary, they will link our destinies with our sister States of the South. And we further recommend the govornor to re-assemble the Legislature, if necessary, to take such action as the crisis may demand, by arming the State, or otherwise.

There were exciting times in this part of the State at that time. On the same day of the Carrollton meeting a large secession meeting was held at Boonville, addressed by George G. Vest,t the flag of the Confederate

States was raised " with fifteen stars," and strong resolutions were adopted. The secession flag was raised at Kansas City and St. Joseph, and the U. S. Arsenal at Liberty was captured by a company of about 100 men, and nearly 1,000 stand of arms, ten pieces of cannon and a large amount of powder* taken.

Re-Assembling Of The Legislature

On the 22d of April, Gov. Jackson re-convened the Legislature, which assembled af Jeflerson City on the 2d of May. At this session several " war measures " were adopted, the chief of which was the " Military Bill," providing for the organization and maintenence of the military forces of the State, celled by the Bill th6 " Missouri State Guard." This bill was passed within about fifteen minutes after the reception of the news of the capture of Camp Jackson by the Federal forces under Captain Lyon, (afterward Brigadier-General). For it, Representative Eads, of Carroll, voted under protest, explaining his vote at the time.

Secession Meeting In Sugar Tree Bottom

On the 27th of April a meeting of the citizens of Sugar Tree Bottom township was held at Moss Creek church "to consider the situation." Col. W. W. Austin presided and the secretary was Calvin Thompson, Esq. From the secretary's report it appears that a committee on resolutions was appointed, consisting of R. H. Coats, H. Trotter, Col. M. McCorkle, John B. Floyd, E. W. Turner, - R. B. Hudson, John Hall, Col. T. G. Dobbins, Dr. R. H. Corrin, and J. L. Deatherage. This committee reported a long series of resolutions, favoring the immediate taking of measures " with a view of severing all political connection with the usurping government at Washington:" desiring "an early call of the convention of the state, and that we hereby recommend an immediate resumption on the part of the 'state of the powers delegated to the general government," resolving " that we will not, if in our power to prevent it, suffer any hostile army to pass through our state to coerce our southern brethren," etc., etc.

A company of " Home Guards," which, as the report states, " had been formed for home protection," paraded, and while the committee on resolutions were consulting. Miss Sallie Trundle, on behalf of the ladies of the district, came forward and presented " a large and beautifully wrought southern flag," to the organization, "making," says the report, "a charming and patriotic address, that made every true southern heart swell with pride and emotion." Says the report further:

In behalf of the guards. Dr. The. Dobbins responded in a manly and mgnified effort, assuring the fair one that southern chivalry still lived, and that beautiful banner should never be trailed in the dust while a true pat- riot lived in the south. At the close of Dr. D.'s remarks, the young and talented Mr. L. K. Kinsey, of Carrollton, being loudly called for, took the stand and made a short and exceedingly eloquent speech in defense of southern rights and southern honor, calling down the house in frequent bursts of applause.

The May Meeting At Carrollton

An adjourned meeting of the people of the county was held at the court house in Carrollton, May 6, 1861. Maj. Chas. Sterne, chairman of the former committee, presided, and John Guillett was secretary.

Resolved^ That we hold it to be the duty of our county court to tender as a loan to the state of Missouri the sum of $10,000 to be appropriated to the arming of military companies, in this county, and that the court should, for the purpose of furnishing that sum, use all money at her command; and if she cannot raise said amount immediately, she should issue bonds to facilitate her, and that an application be made to the legislature to legalize the act.

Resolved^ That the court shall appoint a commissioner to confer with the state authorities, in regard to the procurement of arms, and, if it should appear after a conference, that there will be a likelihood of much delay, the said commissioner be empowered to contract with other parties for arms, and use said $10,000 in paying for them.' The commissioner shall be allowed his expenses only in discharging the duties imposed upon him,

Resolved, That we \dew with scorn and disdain the marshaling and arming of northern troops, and the act of sending them to our borders will be regarded as insulting to a free people; and while President Lincoln continues thus to menace us, we will entertain no proposition for a peaceful settlement of existing difficulties.

Resolved, That under no circumstances will we permit or allow the armed bands of Abraham Lincoln to enter, quarter in, or pass through our state under the pretense of enforcing the laws; and that we will not look on with indifference while northern troops are being congregated on southern soil.

Resolved, That, in view of the facts above stated, it is the duty of the legislature of the state of Missouri, to adopt such measures as will at once place her on a war basis, that she may, at all times, be ready to assume either a defensive or an offensive attitude, as circumstances may warrant or justify.

Mr. Hiram Wilcoxson was appointed a committee to wait upon the county court and inform the members thereof of the action of this meeting. He returned and reported that the court had said that all should be done as asked for, as far as they had, the power.

The citizens of Carroll county who have associated themselves together for the purpose of organizing a military . company to be named " The Carroll Mounted Guard," will meet at the court house, in the town of Carrollton, at or about the hour of 10 o'clock, a. M.,on Tuesday, the 14th d^ of May, A. D. 1861, and then and there proceed to the election of the officers of said company, and for the purpose of being mustered into the state service.

A large number of men offered to volunteer under this order, and it was seen that there would be but little difficulty in forming not only one company, but a battallion "to do the state some service."

A meeting of the citizens of Morris township was held at Mandeville on Saturday, May 11, 1861. Jonathan Traughber was called to the chair and I. R. Brown was chosen secretary. A committee on resolutions was appointed, consisting of Xbos. S. Steel, J. H. Graham, John E. Mayo, J. L. McDaniel, and W. H. Glaze. Resolutions were reported and unanimously adopted; Declaring it the imperative duty of Missouri to institute means at once to organize, arm, and equip the military for home defense; approving and endorsing the action of Gov. Jackson in refusing troops to coerce the south ; opposing the passage of any troops from either of the contending parties through this state for the purpose of waging war against each other; declaring that on the call of Gov. Jackson " Morris township will respond with a company in proportion to her honor and population, lor the defense of the state," etc., etc.

*Mr, Eads states that it was in obedience to the instruction of the last resolution, uclivered to him by Mr. Hiram Wilcoxson, that he voted for the " military bill," carrying out the wishes of his constituents as embodied in the resolution next to the last.

On the same day a meeting of the citizens of Hurricane township was held, which was well attended. Stephen Hancock was chosen chairman, and D. I. Maxon, secretary. Messrs. W. R. Creel, Dr. Gamer, Dr. Brown, John W. Staton, A. J. Carson^ and Thos. H. Ballou composed the committee on resolutions. Mr. Wm. Scott delivered an address. The following preamble and resolutions were adopted:

Whereas, The citizens of the county of Carroll, in view of the present distracted condition of our once prosperous and beloved union, deem it necessary to call a meeting in each township of the county for the purpose of organizing a military company for home and mutual protection ; therefore.

Resolved^ That we, the citizens of Hurricane township, whose names are hereunto subscribed, volunteer our services to the county for the purposes above mentioned.

Resolved^ That every member of this company hold himself in readiness, at the shortest notice to aid in repelling any invasion or attack that may be made upon us or our property, or upon the persons or property of this or any of the adjacent counties.

Resolved^ That each member of this company shall look well to any fire-arms in his possession, and keep them in good condition for immediate service until such time as we can procure arms from the county.

A company of fifty-one men enrolled, and proceeded to elect officers: Captain, B. C. Woods; first lieutenant, A. Gillespie; second lieutenant, A. J. Cason; orderly sergeant, John M. Cottingham. After .t short time, spent in drilling, the company adjourned to meet the following Saturday, for the purpose of additional drill and military instruction.

After The Camp Jackson Affair

The great excitement in the county prior to the capture of Camp Jackson, May 10, was intensified upon the receipt of the news in Carroll county. . Said the Carrollton Democrat^ of May 18: "From morning till night, since last Monday, crowds from all parts of our county are in town, and companies forming, drilling, and marching to the heavy beat of the drum. Here in town we have two military companies - one of infantry the other of cavalry - and in every township in the county is one company or more." In the same paper also appeared the following:

To the Toting Men of Carroll County: - Your state has been invaded by a foreign enemy! The blood of the women and children of Missouri has stained the soil of the state! The capital is threatened by invaders! Come forward, and join the Carroll infantry immediately. The company is organized for service forthwith, and will leave for the scene of action as soon as they number sufficiently. The county court will equip the company. Be on hand immediately.*

Notice was also given of a meeting of the citizens of Grand River township, at Chicken Point, for' the purpose of organizing a military company and to meet once a week for the purpose of drill.

Departure Of The First Military Company

On the 16th of May, the Carroll light infantry, C. M. Morrison commanding, left the county, at the call of the governor, to defend the capital from an apprehended attack by the federal forces at St. Louis, under command of Gen. Lyon and Col. F. P. Blair. This was the first company to leave the county to engage in hostilities against the federal authority.

Before leaving Carrollton, a fine flag was presented to the company, by Miss Ophelia Walling, on behalf of the ladies of Carrollton. Miss W. afterwards became Mrs. Dr. Winfrey.

The following account of the movements of the company is from the diary of Orderly Sergeant Chas. E. Blackwell, afterwards captain of the company, and killed at the battle of Oak Hill, or Wilson's Creek:

May i6 '. - We left Hill's Landing on the steamer W. H, Russell. Our company numbers sixty-five men. We lay at Snowden's wood-yard all night, l^ound on board two fine companies, one from Jackson and one from Clay county. The boat is crowded with passengers, among whom is a Colonel Todd, who claims relationship with Mrs. Lincmn. He claims to be a confident of Jeff Davis (bosh!), and seems to know a little of everything. There is also a Mr. Matheny: he knows it all. He is a great "secesh;" wants others to do, and to do nothing himself, like many in our own county.

May //. - We passed Miami, Cowbridge and Glasgow. At these places we found banners ^ing and handkerchiefs wa\nng, but no soldiers I At Arrow Rock, Boonville and Rocheport the situation was the same. The people said the soldiers had gone down. The pulse runs high with the kid-gloved men, especially among those just able to raise a mustache. I see none of the bone and sinew of the country hallooing for Dixie.

May 1 8. - We reached Jefferson City early in the morning, and were greeted»by the soldiers and citizens. We marched up to the female seminary, which we made our headquarters. After we were settled and became a little quiet, a general disposition to leave camp pervaded the company. Our captain disappears; the lieutenants are similarly affected, and require the orderly sergeant to perform all their duties. In the evening I called on Mr. Houston, who was veiy kind, and took me to the adjutant general's and the quartermaster's office.

May jg. - We are left tjy the officers to look out for ourselves. The soldiers are scattered all over the city. This evening we drilled, and I think ours the best disciplined company, save a few that have been here for some time. Kelley's company, from St. Louis, is very fine. There IS general disorder throughout the camps, and we are in more danger from our own men than from the enemy.

May 20. - The boys all scatter again. Some kick up a fuss with the Dutch; a few others and myself try to get the boys together, but find it hard work, and quit almost in despair.

May 21. - The morning passed off without much o£ interest. In the evening the governor ana General Price arrived from St. Louis. We reelected officers; no change. We were sworn into the state senHce; visited the adjutant general's office and got copies of the military law; spent some two hours looking around the capitol; saw portraits of Washington, Jefferson, Jackson, Clay and Benton; afterward I walked about the dty with serious thoughts. We saw General Price; he is a good-looking man. He made us a speech. Gov. Jackson also made a speech. He told us to go home. He is a good talker, but has hard looks. I was disappointed in his appearance. He is a foxy old 'coon.

May 2^f.. - Reached home this morning. Stored our camp equipage, and each man took his own course for home. If we ever meet again, time will tell.

About the time the "military bill" was passed, May 10, there were 12,000 kegs of powder in Jefferson City. Anticipating an attack on the capital, the railroad bridge across the Osage river was burned, and this powder was sent out into the country by Gov. Jackson, and secreted, being distributed through Cooper, Saline, Howard, Chariton, Carroll and other counties.

Mr. Hiram Wilcoxson had been sent as Carroll county's commissioner to Jefferson City to instruct Representative Eads to vote for the "military bill," and to arrange for the arming and equipment of the troops of this county. By him a large quantity of this powder was brought to the county b}^ steamer, landed at Hill's Landing and placed in what were supposed to be safe places. Some of it was hidden in hemp shocks, some of it in cellars, and it is said some of it yet lies hidden in the woods surrounding Carrollton.

Miscellaneous Meetings Of The People

May 17, Representative Eads returned from Jefferson City (the legislature having adjourned), and immediately a crowd gathered about him and demanded an account of his stewardship. All repaired to the court house, where Mr. Eads made a speech explaining his course on the military, to which he said he had been strongly opposed for various reasons, but for which he voted in obedience to the demand made upon him by his constituents. He also stated that because of his opposition to the bill he had incurred the displeasure of the governor, who had taken the opportunity to express his indignation toward him in the presence of the commissioner, Mr. Hiram Wilcoxson, who had been sent from this county' to Jefferson City to purchase arms, etc.*

At the conclusion of Eads' speech there was considerable dissent from his views and sentiments, and it is said that a violent altercation occurred

Meetings were held in nearly every township every week, and mustering, drilling, and prganizing, together with a great deluge of " war talk " engrossed the time and attention of the people. Business of all kinds was neglected to prepare for imminent battle and bloodshed. Very soon Letwich's or Brewster's company of cavalry was organized and enlisted by Col. James W. Buchanan, who was enrolling officer for the county for the "Missouri State Guard." Capt. J. L,. Traughber's company, from Morris township, numbering.lOO men, next made its appearance in Carrollton. All of the members of this company were mounted, and presented an excellent appearance, as they marched into town. As they formed on the public square, " Three cheers for the Mandeville company " were called for, and given with a will. A meeting was being held in the court house and the company marched in and was greeted with great applause. Capt. Traughber, in response to enthusiastic calls, mounted the rostrum and made an impassioned speech, of which the following is said to be the substance:

Fellow Citizens: - * * * The time has come when every true patriot must defend his country to the best of his ability. We must defend our homes and firesides against the mercenary legions of Abraham Lincoln to the last. (Applause). In this contest there must be no shirking and no shrinking. (Applause). Every man must do his part. For my part, I am getting along in years, and there are some things I cannot do; but I want you all to know that I come of a breed of dogs that never get too old to fight. (Wild applause). I hope I shall ever be found defending my country from assaults from every quarter, and especially in this contest do I desire to do my duty. I hope you will all see this as I do. I have here before me one hundred of my brave Shelbydines, (alluding to the members of his company whom he called by this fanciful name*) and we intend to stand by our state and our country till the last drop of blood is shed, if necessary; and I have four son.s that I am willing shall go forth to serve their country. (Applause). Let us all do our duty and the war will soon be over. You must all do something. If you can't fish you must cut bait. I hope we will all do our duty in this crisis and save our country from the perils that threaten her. (Applause).

A the conclusion of Capt. Traughber's speech. Col. Buchanan, the mustering officer, rose and said: "Capt. Traughber, please form your company in the square, and they will be sworn into the service immediately.'' All at once there seemed to be a hitch in the proceedings, somewhere. Nobody had expected this or desired it. The men had come away from home unprepared for taking the field or leaving the county at once, and only a few expressed a willingness to be sworn in. Even the " old fighting Capt. Traughber, found, upon contemplation, that his business was >n such condition that it demanded his personal attention for a considerable

Afterward, the Morris township company and that of Hurricane were consolidated, forming Pritchard's company, afterwards Minick's, when Pritchard was elected lieutenant colonel of the regiment (Rives'). It was a splendid company and performed important service for the confederate cause.

The county authorities took some action in the premises. Petitioned to appropriate $10,000 for the arming and equipping of trooops - or loan that amount to the state, equivalant to the same thing - the county court refused, " for want of authority;" but did appropriate, indirectly, $746.19, as appears on the records.

" Ordered that a warrant issue to Hiram Wilcoxson, commissioner, for $746.19, as a loan to the state of Missouri, for the purpose of equippii^ and paying the expenses of a military company, sent from this county to Jefferson city by order of the governor, and that said Wilcoxson be and is hereby appointed commissioner to receive and refund to the county the amount of the above warrant, when paid by the state or the proper officer."

If any further or other sums were appropriated, they have not been found. The county court at that time consisted of T. G. Dobbins, Thomas Minnis, and James Trotter. The latter only is now living in Carroll county. He sa3's that the county court made an order to loan $10,000 to the state, but that only the amount paid Wilcoxson, was ever expended. There is no record of the further disbursement.

Mr. James W. Buchanan, public administrator of the county, having been appointed an enrolling officer for this militar}.' district, as well as division inspector, by Gen. price, issued the following invitation on the 8th of June:

To f he -people of Carroll County-. - The military law of this state, passed at the recent session of the legislature, requires all able bodied free white male inhabitants, over 18 and under 45 years of age, to be enrolled in the Missouri State Guards in their respective districts, and be held in readiness to enter state service w'henever called for.

The undersigned, assistant division inspector for the 4th military district, will be at the brick church on the state road, five miles east of Carrollton, on Saturday the 15th inst., to muster into service and administer the oath to all of those who are willing to enlist in the state service. The good people of this county are earnestly requested to organize themselves into companies, and elect such officers as they may prefer to serve under when called into actual service. Let us stand as a united people in defence of the rights and honor of our state, forgetting all past dissensions, and cheerfully and promptly obey the laws of the state in which we live.

In the early part of June (1861), Gov. Jackson ordered the Carrol county troops to rendezvous at Lexington. Accordingly the companies then organized, together with a number of new volunteers, took up the line of march. Brewster's company of cavalry, Morrison's company, Pritchard's company, and other organizations, numbering in all about 300 men, moved out. On Crooked river, an alarm was given that the federals were in large force in front, and threatening an attack. A line was formed and there were very many amusing incidents as the squadrons were set. Luckily there was no battle. The alarm was caused, it is said, by the advance discovering some ladies riding across the prairies at a distance.

The line was not compactly formed, and there was not much regularity or order in the march; but the men, for the most part, were amateurs, and had much to learn. The forces were armed with shot guns, hunting rifles, and revolvers, and carried their own commissary and quartermaster's stores in farm wagons. For uniforms, each man dressed to please his own particular taste and fancy.

At Lexington, the companies went into camp and into organization. The regiment to which most of the Carroll men belonged was commanded by Col. Rives, of Ray County, and upon its organization Capt. Pritcliard was chosen lieutenant-colonel. This regiment fought its first battle at Carthage ; its subsequent history is given elsewhere.

Union Meetings

Meantime, the Union citizens of Carroll county, those who were opposed to secession and to secessionists, kept a little quiet, but bided their time. They became outspoken and active as soon as the State Guards left the county, and indeed, some of them had not held their peace before. Very many who had, at the inception of the troubles, been warmly opposed to Federal coercion and favored peaceable secession in preference to war, now became ardent supporters of the Federal administration and resolved to stand by it.

Accordingly "Union meetings " were called and held in nearly every part of the county, participated in, in same instances, by men who had taken part in "Southern" meetings only a few weeks before. The conversion of some individuals from secessionists to Unionists was very strik- injT indeed. Some of Capt. Traughber's "brave Shelbydines," for exampie, in a few days went over to the "enemy," and, making their way to Chillicothe where a Federal regiment, the 2d Iowa Infantry, was stationed, enlisted to put down the " wicked rebellion." It is stated that when it was known that the Federal authorities were engaged in moving troops into and across the- State, via the Hannibal & St. Joseph Railway, it was determined by some of the Carroll county Southern men to burn the railroad bridge across Grand River. Upon one occasion, the Morris township '' Shelbydines " concluded to undertake the demolition of the structure. Volunteers were called for, and among those who rode out was John E. Mayo, the first lieutenant of the company. Not enough men could be induced to volunteer, and those who did afterward reconsidered their determination when it was learned that there was a strong force of Federal soldiers at Chillicothe. Some time thereafter Lieut. Mayo and certain other members of the company went to Chillicothe and entered the Federal service. Mayo eventually became major of the 13th Missouri Cavalry, (Union), and was a brave and gallant fighter against the cause which he first espoused. He was drowned in the Platte River, Nebraska, after the close of the war, but while still in the service of- the Government against then Indians.

Meeting At The Burr Oak School House

It is believed that the first union meeting participated in by those who were willing to fight for their faith was held in Morris township, or in what is now Fairfield. This meeting was held on the 16th of May at the Burr Oak school house. The chairman of the meeting was John Taylor, and Thomas Roney officiated as secretary. The secretary's report says that a committee of resolutions, was appointed consisting of Chas. Misner, Robt. McFeran and John Bud, and after a few remarks by some two or three persons, the meeting adjourned until Tuesday, the 21st, at 2 o'clock in the afternoon.

In the perilous times in which our country is thrown, we trust it will not be deemed improper in us to express to our fellow-citizens our united opinion as to the course and duty of our State in the present crisis.