The daily Evansville journal. (Evansville, Ind.) 1862-1863, 1863-04-22
Ght AaiGp aoauttar.
The Rebels in the Mountains.

We give below from the Common
trealth a letter from Abijah Gilbert, for
merly member of the Kentucky Legis-
lature, and lately Doorkeeper of the Sen
ate, addressed to prominent citizen of
Frankfort. That paper justly says Mr..
Gilbert is known to be a gentleman of
intelligence and integrity, and his state
ments in regard to the vandalism of the
rebels in that portion of the State are per
fectly reliable, and should urge our Gov
eminent to vigorous and efficient meas
ures to relieve the most loyal portion of
our State from the heartrrending outrages
that are being committed The appeal
of these suffering patriots should not be
UNDECIDED, and we hope the steps taken
will be prompt Let the recital of these
wrongs fire the loyal men of Kentucky
to fill up the quota of 10000 troops, to
be furnished for service in Kentucky.
Let them rally to the standard, and that
speedily, to beat back the ruthless and
savage invaders, and to avenge the
wrongs of the loyal men of the noun
tains:
GREY HAWK, JACKSON COUNTY, KY,
April Is, 1868.
DEAR SIR: This leaves me lower down
in spirits than have ever been since l
had family. Some ten days ago, Cluke,
with some five hundred men, came in
through by Proctor, in OwSley county,
taking all the horses they could get;
came on to my house, took mule from
me; eat and destroyed all the corn had;
pastured my wheat, and committed other
depredations.
On Tuesday, the 7th inst, H. Mar
shsl"s men, with the guerrilla band
fron Breathitt county, commenced COM
ing into our county by Proctor, taking
horses, cattle, and everything they could
gct hold Of; came on to Boonyille, burn
ed the Jail, destroyed the record in Il e
clerks offices, cut the books up and scat
tered them through the streets; came on
to my house, took every horse and mule
/ had, numbering thirteen, headed by
Jack May, Jerry South's son, VIM. P.
Lacy, James Hurd, and Robert Allen.
They got after my two oldest sons, up
the branch from my house, and shot
most of their ammunition at them; Lacy
then charged upon my oldest son, with
his musket in hand, cursing him-swore
he would hang him. My son drew his
pistol, shot Lacy through the arm, and
into his canteen. Lacy threw up his
hand, and hallooed out, "Don't." Ny
son fired again, took Lacy under tie ear,
and dropped him off his horse-dead.
The boys then broke, the musket balls
cutting all round them; and ran down
steep cliff, that their horses could not
charge down, and made their escape into
the woods The rebels then set fire to
my houses; burned everything l had,
leaving my wife and children with no.
thing but what they had on. Ny wife
got down on her knees to them, and
offered them one thousand dollars, in
cash, if they would not burn her houses
They would not hear her. She then
tried to get her things out of the house.
They kept her off with their muskets;
some few things, however, which she did
get out, were taken from her BY the
rebels, consisting principally of thirty
three bed blankets. The remainder all
went to the flames. l was in jackson
county at the time, and am still here
My wife is in school-house, below where
my house stood, with my three Youngest
children-my two boys being hid out in
the mountains with nothing to eat,
wear, or sleep on, except what tie
neighbors can furnish her Neither Of
US can get to see the other, as the rebe s
are still passing. Mine, 1 understand,
was the seventeenth house they have
burned on the route up as far as my
place understand they burned Clarke s
Salt Works, and also Gen Theophilus I.
Garrards houses How true this l do
not know The damage done, so far as
up to my house, is certainly true. Ny
70 10 irbf
all the particulars.
have begged and plead hard with the
authorities below for help. The only
comfort | get is, we are not worth taking
care of, and ought to leave. One thing
you know, and that is, that the people
here are so poor that they cannot gel
away; and if they could, how are they to
live when they have no means, after they
leave, to go upon.
These counties that are suffering so
much are the most loyal portion of the
State-Clay, Owsley, and Jackson TURF
ing out, upon an average, five hundred
volunteers to the county, and not one o.
them permitted to come here to the res
cue of their families and friends, but are
all sent to Vicksburg, Murfreesboro, and
other points out of the State
have not seen my wife for some three
weeks, and don't know what to do We
have no meat nor grain to live on here
and no horses or mules to take US away
nor no means to buy with All my
papers, notes, accounts, deeds, and eve
rything had hurnod up, and not left anj
clothing even for change. l am COINS
to try to get through to my family to
night, if can, and will in few days
decide what we will do-for l have giver
up all hope of any protection from tn
Government here, and number of fami
lies are bound to starve.
Yours truly,