Mexico weekly ledger., 1883-03-29
FORT AND FLEET.
sHELBY's BATTLE WITH GUN BOATS
A Confederate Who Went Looking for
Fight. And Who Got One and
Gun.Boat to Boot. 50

~
the regular southern troops with re-
lentless hand.
Mosby, Rosser, Imboden and other
confederate leaders in Virginia were
called guerrillas, and yet each was a
regular commissioned officer, bound
by all military regularly sworn into
service and as much entitled to hon
orable treatment when captured as
any Of Lees men. Because these
men moved with small commands
they were partisans; because they
were constant and dangerous foe to
the federal front they were gnerrillas.
So the federal government reasoned,
and no one cared that all these COM
mands were raised under special
act of the confederate congress,
which was as binding on every con-
federate as any law could be.
Quantren went into the war as a
confederate soldier, but turned guer-
rilla and placed himself outside the
orders of che confederate government.
While he hated the union men, and
made bloody war upon. them, scores
of instances can be cited where he
robbed and plnndered sconfederates.
He was perhaps the only leader who
deserved the title of guerrilla, and
the confederacy would have re-
joiced to hear that his whole COM
mand had been captured and strung
up. %.t.2 -.#E:srs5
According to federal ruling, Gen.
Joe Shelby was the great guerrilla
leader of the southwest. According
to facts, he was regularly commits
stoned, his men were regularly en-
listed, and he drew his arms, equip
ments and rations through the same
channels as other confederate troops.
But because he was crafty, enduring,
a hard fighter and an implacable foe,
he was dubbed guerrilla, and on
one occasion price was set upon his
head. .rft.ftttf-
Confederate military records prove
that Shelby made longer marches,
scored more fights, captured more
prisoners and fought at greater odds
than any other man in the war in the
southwest. He often handled three
brigades, well equipped with artillery,
and had he been in the army of Vir'
gina he would have won a name
alongside of Stuart, Hampton an6
Fitzhugh Lee.
In the spring of 1864 the fedora
gun-boats became terror along thu
White River and other streams. Con
federate camps were shelled out, fort
knocked to pieces, and the streams
so keenly watched that hardly a skif
could cross. Along the White Rive
1.-The dread of. these floating monster,
seriously interfered with confederat,
military plans, but there was one mai
who scoffed at them. That man wa
Gen. Shelby, and when the excite
meet was at its highest he took hi
command, then numbering about 30
men, and set out in search OF. a feder
al gun-boat. He wanted to find one
and then he wanted fair fight wit
/ her. It was a. queer proceeding, bu
he was in earnest and he soon foun
what be desired.
The federal gun-boat Queen Cit
was lying at Clarendon, below Du
Wallis Bluff, and as soon as Shelby
scouts brought him the news he head
ed straight for Clarendon. He di
) not reach the town until a late hour 3
night, and the gun-boat was then al
chored about 275 feet from the banl
!, Shelby's force at once took up
position on the bank directly oppt
site the boat. The four pieces Of al
; tillery were put in battery on a pc
fectly level spot, rather higher tina
the craft at anchor, but without {
much as weed or twig betwee
them. The troops, outside of thos
required to work the guns, were d
, vided and placed On the tanks Of Il
battery. Not q sod was turned |
stone raised to form a breastworl
;. Shelby wanted fair fight, and
would neither mask his guns nor a
low his infantry to shelter themseive
While his artillery was. inferior
numbers and strength, he had an OF
set in over 600 Tridemen, who we
to keed up a CONTINUOUS FIRE on tt
Il craft as soon as the fight opened,
1t may seem strange that nearly
thousand confederates could asser
n BILE so near the gun-boat. post the
U artillery and place the men without
alarm reaching the steamer, but SUI
was the case. There were lookou
ion the boat, but there was a mist
/ the river and they could not see not
{ ing, even if they should have heard
n 4 PATRIOTS DEATH.
p Shelby threw a chain Of sentri
s along the bank to prevent any o
: from going out to the boat to gi
, warning, but union man nam
i Robertson. WHO had short leg a
"a en- uearly Head of consumptiOp I'll