River Falls journal. [volume] (River Falls, Pierce County, Wis.) 1872-2019, 1881-09-01
THE CAPTURE OF JEFF DAVIS.
The story Told Once More by One of
the Participants.


"On the 9th day of May, 1865, Col.
Pritchard, with the Fourth Michigan
cavalry, parted with the First Wiscon-
sin cavalry at the fork of roads near
Abbeysville, Ca, about noon, and
when some four miles from there halted
and made hurried preparations for
forced march. Leaving all baggage.
pack mules, disabled men, and horses
in charge of Major Hathaway, he
started between the hours of 8 and D.
m. on circuitous road to Irwinsville,
Ga, marching some 30 or 60 miles, ar
irving there near II that night, where
he learned from negro that party
of strangers were encamped, perhaps
mile from the town, and to where the
negro guided them; and when wit in
some 150 rods of the strangers camp,
no picket being observed, Col Pritch-
ard dismounted part of his force and
advanced as near as prudent, where
they lay perfectly quiet until break of
day, when the mounted men were or
dered up quietly, and all advanced to-
gether quickly and took the camp by
surprise, surrounding it some eight or
ten tents instantly. A guard was
placed at each tent, and few minutes
after a lady appeared at the door of
one of them and asked the guard to
stay out SO that they could dress, as
there were none but ladies in the tent.
A few minutes later she appeared at
the door again and asked permission of
the guard to let her go for pail of
water, and the request was granted.
Two persons passed out of the tent
dressed in women's apparel, and one of
them carrying pail, and both going
in the direction of a swamp. At this
stage of the drama Private James +.
Billiard, who was in the act of buckling
the girth of his saddle on to spirited
bay horse that he had procured few
moments before by forced swap
with a confederate prisoner of high
station and, having his eyes roaming
admiringly about the head and shout
ders of his new steed, noticed in the
direction in which the horse was look
ing what appeared to be two women
some six or eight rods distant. Look
ing up to Corp. George Munger, his
partner, who was mounted beside him,
he said: There go two women who
ought to be stopped. There may be
more rebs out there Munger replied:
That's so; I'll stop Them and suiting
the action to the word he dashed off
At the same moment Billiard jumped
into his saddle and followed, arriving
near the supposed women but mo-
ment after Munger, who, however, had
ordered them to stop. One of the
ladies said: we are going to the
spring for water Munger replied,
You will have to go back, at the same
time riding nearer so as to stop their
further progress into the swamp. On
looking them fairly in the face while il
was still twilight, he noticed that one of
them was a man, on which discovery
he pointed his carbine at him, when
the man threw off . shawl which COW
cred his head and shoulders, also wo,
mans loose wrapper. The lady then
threw her arms about her male COM
panions neck, exclaiming, in plant
i've but composed tone of voice:
Please don't shoot him. and the man
replied Let them shoot; | may as
well die here as anywhere Now, let
it be remembered that the scene of the
ulSCON0Ty vi tue TWO peTSOIlS, MI. anu
Mrs. Davis, by Billiard, and their cap
ture by Munger and him jointly lasted
but few moments, and that no one
was present, or nearer than seventy
five or one hundred feet, except the
four persons mentioned, consequently
no one could have heard what was
said at the moment of the capture.
But few moments later, however,
quite a number of the command were
present, surrounding the prisoners on
the spot where they were stopped, and
from which they were marched to
their tent, the man having no hat, and
leaving the shawl and wrapper where
they were dropped at the time and
place of discovery. At this time
neither Munger nor Billiard knew who
the prisoners were, but in less than fiji
teen minutes their identity was made
known to all present, and it was on the
following day that the private soldiers
of the mand learned of the re-
ward. This is the simple story of the
capture of Jefferson Davis, SIS related
by James f. Billiard, one of the two
soldiers who captured him."