The weekly pioneer and Democrat. [volume] (Saint Paul, Minn. Territory) 1855-1865, 1863-10-23
BAXTER SPRINGS MASSACRE.
Letter from Major General Blunt.
Numbering Of Unarmed Men and
Surrendered Prisoners.

Murderllg OF UnarMed Men and
Surrendered Prisoners.
PARTICULARS OF THE AFFAIR.
BAXTER SpRINas, 63 MILrs BELOW Fonr SooTT,
October Z, 1Sd3-lO O'Clock r. N.
Captains TnoLEx and LoRINa:
Everything in the staff wagons is lost /:
the wagons were burned with most of their
contents. We have inst
found the body of Major Curtis. major
Curtis body, as also that of Judge Advo-
cate Lieutenant Farr, arrived in Leaven-
worth on the 1lth inst } When wrote to
Major Blair last night it was supposed he
was prisoner, as We had searched the
ground over near where his horse fell, and
could not find him. Moreover. Qlantrells
adjutant, or person representing himself
as such, who came into Lieutenat Ponds
camp with flag Of truce, said they had my
assistant adjutan. general prisoner. To-
day he was found near where he was thrown
from his horse, shot through the head. evil
dently murdered after being taken pris
oner. l shall start his body, with that of
Lieutenant Farr, to Fort Scott this eve
ming. You will probably have heard some
of the particulars of the affair here yester-
day, bef,re yOu receive this. The escort,
Company |. Sd Wisconsin, and Company
A, l4th Kansas, consisting of 100 men
behaved disgracefully, and stampeded like
a drove of frightened cattle. did not an
ticipate any difficulty until we got below
this point. We arrived near this camp
about IL Nj and halted on the hill almost
in sight Of the camp, and not more than
four hundred yards distant, to wait tor the
escort and wagons to close up.
The escort came up and dismOunted, to
wait for the train which was but a short
distance behind. At this time my atten
ton was called to body of men, about
one hundred, advancing in line from the
timber on Spring river, on the left, WI ich
you will recOllecJ is not more than three
or four hundred yards from the road. The
lett Of the line was not more than two
hundred yards from Lieut.. Ponds camp at
the spring. They being nearly all dressed
in federal uniforms, supposed them at
first, to be Lieut.. Ponds cavalry Uwo
companies) on service At Il same time
my suspicious were aroused by some of
their movements. ordered the wagons,
which had come up, to the rear, and form
ed the escort in line, with their carbines
unslung, while I advanced alone toward
the party fronting us, to ascertain if they
were rebels / had advanced but a short
distance when they opened fire; at the
same time firing was heard down in Ponds
camp. Turning around to give the order
to the escort to fire, l discovered them all
broken up and going over the prairie to
the west at full speed. They did not even
discharge the loaded carbines they had in
their hands, except in few cases. Had
the escort stood their ground, as soldiers
should have done, they could have driven
the enemy in ten minutes.
/ endeavOred in vain, with the assis-
tance OF Major Curtis, to halt and form a
portion of them. When the escort stam-
peded, the enemy discovering it, rushed
on with yell, followed by another line of
about two hundred, that emerged from
the edge of the timber. Being better
mounted than our men they soon closed
in on them. The men of the escort were
much scattered, and with them it was a
run for life. After going mile I snc-
ceeded in hating fifteen men, including
Lent. Pierce, Company A, l4th Kansas,
who has done his duty we'll and nobly
throughout. As soon as l got them in
line and commenced advancing on the
pursuing enemy, they fled and fell back
to the wood, when our whole command,
(six hundred) formed in line of battle.
Tho ho1 f1,0 <hof chat hoH
capped were all out Of sight in the advance.
Major Curtis had been seen to fall from
his horse, which had been wounded and
stumbled in crossing a ditch. About
one O'Clock / sent Lieutenant Toppan (who
had kept with me all the time) with four
men to Fort Scott, while with the other
nine determined to wait until the fate of
those that had fallen could be ascertained,
and whether the post at the spring had
been captured, which l much feared was
the case. As they fell back to the road,
l followed them up over the road We had
come, to look for the wounded, but all,
with two or three exceptions (who had es-
capped accidentally were killed, shot
through the head. All the wounded had
been murdered. kept close to them and
witnessed their plundering the wagons.
AT one time they made dash at me with
about one hundred men, endeavoring to
surround me, but tailed in their purpose.
AS they moved off on the road leading
south, l went down to the spring and
found them all o. K.
Lieut.. Pond, of the Third Wisconsin,
and also his command, are entitled to
great credit for the manner they repulsed
the enemy and defended the post. The
colored soldiers fought with great gallant