The daily Chattanooga rebel. [volume] (Griffin, Ga.) 1864-1865, 1864-11-21
The Murder of Six Confederate soldiers
At st. Louis--ParticuIars Of the Exc

The Murder of Six Confederate soldiers
At st. Louis--ParticuIars Of the Exc
cution.
Several paragraphs have been published ffoia
ton 10 shoot six Confederate soldiers, in retalia-
ton for SIX yankees who were killed during Gen.
Prices expeditions The murder took place a.
81. Louis on the lsi Instant Six Confederates
were selected from the prisoners in the Gratiot
street prison, bnt one Of them proving 10 have
been q teamster, his name was stricken from the
death roll and that Of GeorgeiF Bunch. of the
Sd Missouri Cavalry, substituted The men
we're not iRformed of their fate uatli the dsx Of
execution The St. Louis Democrat gives the tol-
loving details Of their murder
At about two O'Clock. Saturday afternoon,
the men were taken from the prison. placed in
q covered wagon, and escorted 10 the place Of ex
ecution By detachment Of the Tenth Kansas,
followed By number Of other. soldiers and by n
sfew citizens Foit No. {, short distance south o.
Lafayette Park, was selected as the place of exef
cution, and 10 that point the procession marched
without music.
On the west side of the fort six posts had been
set in the ground. each with seat attached, and
each tied with strip Of white cotton cloth, after
wards used in bandaging the ewes OF the prison
TONERS forty -four of them belonging 10 the Tenth
Kansas aud ten to the Forty FIRST Missouri Thir-
y SIX OF these composed she front firing party,
eighteen reserved IN case they should not DO the
work edectuailf.
About three O'Clock the prisoners arrived on
the ground andsa down, attached 70 the posts
considering the circumstances, remained remark
ably firm. Farther Ward and Rev. Mr.. Mckim
them to uttheiE trust In God The row Of posts
ranged north sad south and at thu first on the
ReoSth was Asa Y. I,adds on his left was George
Nichols, next Harvey II. Blackburn. George T.
Bhnch Charles W Minniken and James W
Gates. Ladd and Blackburn sat with perfect calm
ness, with their eyes fixed on the ground, and did
not speak Nichols gave no SONS Of emotion at
first, but sat with seeming in ference. scraping
the ground with his feet Hf asked Of the
surgeons if there was any hope Of postpone
meat, and being assured that there was none he
looked more serious. aud frequently calculated
lord, have mercy my poor soul,-' Aud again
he said 90 to think Of tie news that Will 20 20
father and mother =
After the reading of the sentence By Colonel
HeInrichs. hinniken expressed desire 70 say a
few words. lie said:
Soldiers, and all of YOU who hear me- taxa
warning from me. Ihaye been Confederate sol
der for Years and have served my country faith
fully am now 10 be shot for what other men
have done, that had no hand IN. and know notii-
ing about. ! never was guerrilla, and / am sor-
~ 10 be shot for what had nothing 10 do with.
aud what am not guilty of. When took pris-
oner always treated him kindly, and never
harmed a filan after he Surrendered hope God
viii take me 10 his bosom when am dead o
Lord be with-me
While the sergeant was bdndaging his eyesI
Minnikln said-.Sergeant, J. dom blame you
hope will sli meet IN heaven. Boys, when yoii
kill me. kill me dead
The eyes OF all being baudaged, they badc each
other farewell. Good bye, George, one said;
Farewell, Nicholas" said another; s.Good bye,
Blackburn, uttered seFeraI; and two OF three Of
them said BOYS, farewell 10 you all; the Lord
have mercy on our poor souls y
The firing party was about ten PAGES of. Some
of the Kansas men appeared TO be reluctant TO
fire upon the prsoners but Captain Jones told
them i was their dTty; that they should have no
hesitation. as these men had taken the life Of
many Union man " ho was as innocent as them
selves,
At the word the thirty-sx soldiers fired stimuli
taneousy-the discharge sounding like single
explosion The aim Of every was true One
or two of the victims gfoaned, and blackburn
cried out, '.Oh. kill me quickly" In fve minutes
ffsy were all dead-ther heads falling 10 one side
aud their bodies swinging around TO the sides Of
the posts and being kept from IA.ling bT the pin
iesss on their Five Of then were shot
through the heart, and the sixth received three
.ballsin his breast, dying almost instantli-