Mineral Point tribune. (Mineral Point, Wis.) 1869-1938, 1882-04-20
WASHINGTON.
on THE MISSION OUTLAWS.

j esse James, the late robber,
No; but saw Quantrel, the pioneer
and master spirit of all that class tf
fellows, at General Prica's head-quar-
.ers, where he used TO run in, after be-
ing hard pressed in his irregular war
fare, and ask to take regular command.
General Price knew it was of no use;
that Quantrel and his followers would
take the first opportunity to go off and.
depredate again, and he did not assent.
But l was surprised at the youthful,
demure appearance of Quantrel, con-
sidering his bloody reputation. He
arises, TO my mind, as blue eyed,
blonde-haired boy, about FIVE feet nine
inches high, demure and docile-look-
ing. | thought it wa. wonderful that
such deeds were perpetrated by such
a childish-looking person"
"What was the animating spirit in
the war of such guerillas ?"
Revenge and 9evilmens--a reckless
life and blood They were not desir-
Gus to rob particularly; they wanted to
kill and get even' The competed
with each other for desperate adven-
lures, in which lite was always at stake
and death was the ihiliction upon the
enemy"
"How do you account for the exist
ence of such an element in Missouri"
at is the development of certain
element found in Kentucky, and well
known there upon the greater area and
wilder freedom or lessened constraint
of the plains.
"Was General Price able to control a
set of outlaws like those?"
''He did the lest be could, but no.
body could control them well. / will
give you an instance of that. On Gen
eral Prices staff was u Scotchman
nameq McLane, kind, faithful, loyal
confederate man, but little rigorous
about rules and discipline Just about
the close of the war McLane was APP
preached by another man about head
quarters, named Woods, desperate.
1t was in Arkansas. Woods wished to
go home to Missouri to see girl he
had He said to McLane. General
Price says give me leave of absence
for two weeks General Price has no
right to grant any leave of absence,
answered McLane. Here is the order
of General Kirby Smith stopping that
system Oh, d-n you,' said Woods,
'Pll go to General Price and get my
leave of ABSENCE Price was an easy
plain, matter-of-fac man. He said to
his son: CELSIUS, write him the leave of
ABSENCE And, although McLane inter-
posed, the man got it, General Price
made the error OF telling Woods that
1t was against Mclare's protest.
"Whas that vindictive lawessness
confined to men of low extraction?"
"No. | knew n young man whose
father was an eminent Judge and his
mother connected with the cream Of
Kentucky families. He had sweet
heart in Missouri whom he used to
clip over through our lines and see.
Some Union cavalry came there one
day and killed her father on the charge
of breaking his parole in some way,
and made the family prepare their din
ner afterward. That young fellow,
who was of a reckless, outlaw nature,
went and killed every one those parties
by assassination, he and band, call
lllS tDtul out vi lItli llOIlltS anu SilbOt-
ing them down."
did not General Price use Guam
trel's men rs scouts for his army when
he invaded Missouri"
"Ihey may have been acting in APP
parent connection with the movem ent,
but | do not recall it. You see the
regular army of the state Of Missouri
enlisted for the confederate govern
ment was about 5000 strong at the be-
ginning of the war; 1t was unable to
hold permanent lines like armies east
of the Mississippi, and, therefore, the
state was left open for the lawless
ranges of either army to operate"
"Was it not an error against the civil
security of Missouri to have forced
her into the rebellion at all Who did
it?'
81 regard that war;" said Col. Snead,
CAS- bound to have come. Missouri was
the greatest state that undertook to
join the rebellion-the most populous.
The two men who more than others
took her in were the governor, Claib
Jackson, and the present United
blttSS DSjdtoiY pNolSC Ntot. ' GSb
was the orator, the Patrick
Henry of secession in Missouri.
Jackson was the ablest politician in
the State, an ingrained State rights,
pro-slavery man. He had the fnesse
TO carry her into the Confederacy
against the intention of the great bulk
OF her people, warmly as they sympa-
thized with the seeding slave states.
He prepared for the war, and had pow
per enough brought into Missouri be-
fore the struggle broke out to last the
insurgent cause twenty years."
what do you mean by saying the
Missouri people were opposed to the
confederacy?"
81 mean that tht people, although
two thirds of them were in favor Of the
southern objects, had been SO cunning
" converted to the views of John j.
Crittenden, who told them that Vir-
GINA, Kentucky and Missouri, by
keeping neutral, could decide the
quarrel, that they failed to present a
positive and solid southern front, and
Frank Blair was able by his positive
steps against the secession cause to
cripple Governor Jackson before the