Western sentinel. [volume] (Winston [i.e. Winston-Salem], N.C.) 1856-1886, 1878-12-12
A Romance.
SISTER OF MERCY WHO HAD BEEN A
CONFEDERATE GUERILLA.

D of a young woman by yellow feve'
in New Orleans. Annie McKAene
was the wife of noted Mlssour
guerilla, herself for long time d
veritable rough rider of the border
and finally a Sister OF Mercy. in
which capacity she met her death
during the scourge in the Cresct nj
City. The story of her singular
. career, rs authenticated and told
to the Herald correspondent, is as
follows
During the monh Of September.
10 the year 1862, the,e rode up to
the farmhouse of Andrew Harris,
near Independence, Mo, II band ot
seventy men aimed t" the teeth
with shot guns aud revnlvers. They
all sal we'll on their horses. we'e g
strong and had an urconcerned air
of Determined tIaveIy- A few
were tut boys, while others bad
boards and long barr. T-rey we' e
dressed in diverse >tSle some IN
red, blue Or checked fanuel shirts ;
Others wore cnnt>. All had boots
Coming over tie pau i.i"nI-s above
the knee, aud u-t with with hl2
spurs at the heels. Their horses
were magnificent aud we'll dtck.'d
If wI,h fine saddles and snowy
brldlrS. Al the head of the COM
pany rode a. small man, with 1t
! pal, face, iighf, short hair, blue
ewes and -lghr mnstache. 1t Wa
| Qalntr, II aud Iii, man. Who needs
ur told what they werep Not such
robbers nor tri9httul looking peo
pie ~ some would imagine, but
han enough indeed. They opened
the gate of the balnvard, went in
and dlsnnunted, having left a guard
on he hill half mile back. They
pulled down the hay, opened the
home without saying II WORD to
Harris, the good old farmer they
had come to dispuil. But be was
not dlslul bcd-he was ready to
give them all he had, foi he Was
Que cf that Mt rme,ous class who
lived IN that section who were but
100 ready to euccor auynody whose
mission it was to fight the Kansas
Jayhawkers. The guerillas then
found Nj Harri, IL friend, warm
and ,eady to aid them, even ut the
risk Of his life. Quantrell Was in
vited to lake dinner ut the house
with the family, and his officers
were invited to- come with hun.
One who went WAS John Nc
Keene, in courage or stature the
peer OF any man in the command.
and one of the guerilla chieftaln's
most trusty counsellors. He be
came famous for daring deeds as
well as II handsome appearance
He had come from Cass county
and, in the breaking out of the
war, his father and two brothers
had been killed by Jennison men
from Kansas. McKeene took an
oath that no grass should grow uu
der bis feet ii his pursuit Of the
murde,eIs of his father aud broth
era. and he Kept his oath with
fIightfui vengeance. He. like most
OF his companinns In arms, became
,, a desperate with re verge as the
impending motive. He had kijiel
men, both old and young. He had
learned To shoot them down with
as much deiibeiateuess as if h.
were engaged III IL simple practice
of craftsmanship. Bur he was
hands me tnI all that. He steI ped
| like au hle y, aud had rude
manner that was g aceful In its
way. He wore vide bI mined,
H. ht colol ell hat, on which WAS
pinned black feather Il wide neit
of red NOR, eco. With go.d embroid
cry and the ctIal'N hoot- of Il ied-
eral colonel !'"' ms belt the e
wa> swung Il pair Il, lSo'y hand e |
navy Ievnlv iitv->. Were all the
IL in- that NJ u II t"i All hat H..
carried NIth a- +, b4 ~a~ mas
ter, ready Il wa1-, Ial'H a. a pan
ther and ti,ad ) H. Iit- aim
:
ebt hu-Ia-In at ttt no. >e IF And ew
/ Harris ou the S pit .nuer day ttiaI
Qnautrell cam, to 10 age on him.
Never Wee 90 n, h'y and oat-, IL
well A. food TOR the men, give.
ay with a bette good will But
And'ew Htt Is was not alone IN
hI- Hospitality. His wife had a
ouI WI b 2 Ice aud another buried
Oh ;he fed Of Wilson's Creek
She was doing labor of love. Aud
there was another, the only child
left at home. a girl seventeen years
old, who, like many OF her sex in
that time aud country, had wished
a buhdred times that she were Il
man that. she might go into the
war. She was rather pretty. Her
eyes were blacker than an Indian
maidelts and as piercing, and her
hair was as long and as straight
I a type of woman well known to
| those who lived in western Nilsson.
RI in those troublesome days. She