Marshall County Republican. (Plymouth, Ind.) 1856-1878, 1859-11-17
From The Chicago Tribune.
ANOTHER ARSENAL SACkEDl
ANOTHER TOWN CAPTURED.
No Excitement Whatever.

We copy from the Report of the Con-
gresssional Investigating Commmittee on
Kansas affairs the affidavit Of Capt. Luther
Leonard, concerning the capturing and
plundering of the U. S. Military Depot at
Liberty, Mo-, which as the public are
aware. did not elicit the least suspicion of
treason among the authorities at Wash
ington! The statement will be found in
pages ll29. 1l30. and ll3l, Of the Report
aforesaid:
/ am military storekeopsr. at tl, Mssou-
ri Depot, Liberty, Missouri. / have been
stationed there ten years last March, hav-
ing charge of the arsenal. which contains
arms and ammunitions of all descriptions.
On the 4th Of December, 1856, my clerk.
Mr.. Grant, came from town and said there
was some talk of their coming down to
the arsenal to get arms, but he did not
think they would do so. took no meas
ures Of defence, as / never thought they
would come.
A little after noon, saw Judge James
L. V. Thompson in the arsenal yard, and
walked up to him and greeted him ciyilly,
and asked him to walk to my quarters
lie defined going to my quarrers. and said
he would like to look about a little. /
took him into the armorer's shop first, and
intended going all about with him. We
had been there but a short time before I
saw through the windows number of
people outside. | wished to 60 out and
see what was going on. In the mean
time, number Of men had had slipped
into the armory where we wer,. When I
wished to go out there were men at the
door who told me very civilly | could not
go. One of them was Mr.. Bouton, my
clerks (Mr Grant, father in-law. l took
hold of him and give him little push;
but he said, good naturedly enough, it was
o. no use, as | could not go out. 1 told
them was an old man, with a dislocated
shoulder and but one eye. and l should not
undertake to fight with them. / told
Judge Thompson / thought it was poor
business for the United States to build ar
senals for mob to break open.
The Judge and the others told me there
were troubles in Kansas, and they wanted
arms, but would do nothing wrong with
them. l told the Judge this was aggres-
sive on the part of Missouri, and every COM
munity was competent to take care of its
own affairs, and that the Missourians ought
not to interfere. A good deal more was
said on both sides. and | felt indignant at
the aggression. The Judge himself did
not say an uncivil word to me. 1 had
not expected any such thing as this when
first saw the Judge, or 1 could have had
the gates locked.
The mob proceeded to take arms, for.
cling the doors, and took three six Founders,
some swords. pistols, rifles and ammunition,
powder. balls, dc, as much as they want
ell. They broke some doors open. lido
not know how they got the keys to get in
to the powder magazine, which is co.npos-
ed of brick and had double doors. Cap
tain Price was the leading man in the
crowd, as i understood. Mr.. Rout was
there. l was kept in the room until the
men had got all the arms and ammunition
they wanted and had gone away--Judge
Thompson being the last one when he let
me 60 ont, and then he left himself.
Some six or eight days afterward the
guns were returned to the arsenal. They
were left, was told, at Colonel Aliens
place, some three quarters of a mile from
the arsenal. In the meantime had repor-
ted the facts to Colonel Summer, and he
had sent down company of drsgoons.-
The men sent to me to know if / would
receive the arms, and told them / was
not in command, and referred them to
Captain Beall. and he told them to bring
them along. and they did so. and they
were received. Among the property ts-
ken was soms artillery harness. l cannot
recollcct how many sets. There were some
deficiencies in the number Of rifles. swords.
and pistols, and harness returned, but
cannot state the precise particulsrs.-
These deficiencies have never been made
up by the citizens Of Missouri, but I hsve
been instructed by Colonel Craig. the head
Of the ordinance department at Washing
ton. to purchase sufficient Of such articles
rs could obtain in the neighborhood, to
make up the deficiency, and we did 30;
but the swords, pistols. and rifles we have
not been able to make up. do not know
how much has been expended in making
np this deficiency. Immediately after this
robbery l reported the circumstances to
Jol. Craig at Washington, specifying the
number and amount of each OF the differ
articles taken. In the course of the win
ter he sent me orders TO ship the public
property to Ft. Leavcnworth and ST. Louis
srsenal, giving me a schedule of the
amount to be taken to each place, which
lid as soon as navigation opened e
l.. LEONARD. N. S. K.
Steamboat Polar Star, Missouri River.
june 10th. 1856.