The National tribune., 1884-09-18
MISSOURI IN 1862.
Saving the Di demonstrating the Bushwhaeker's
Cans.

doings / saw in Canton, Lewis Co., Mo-, in the
months of June, July and part of August 1852,
before j joined the army; and if you think it
worthy of publications. here it is.
In the forepart of June / got situation in
| the Press Office at Canton. Rev. Barrett had
bought the material of an Office in Hannibal,
| Mo-, and, while he was waiting for it to be
/ shipped, | worked few days i'll the Record
! office, run in the interest of the Southern Con-
federacy and the Democratic party. 1t was
| edited and run by a man by the name of Rector,
who, after his Office was destroyed by the Fed
erals. went into the rebel army. / had been
] working for him about a week, when about
/ 500 rebel troops with one piece of artillery,
/ came into town, and was lying in wait to capt
urc the steamer Di Vernon, on her way from
Keokuk, Iowa, to St Louis, Mo-, loaded with
! troops and ammunition; and, besides, she had
considerable money on board. / was from
Quincy, H., and one of the boys in the Office
/ knew was Union man, and he told me what
! the rebs were going to try TO do, and asked me
! if he and could not do something to save the
/ Di Vernon. After considerable talk and plan
ming we hit upon a plan that worked to
Il charm. We We're in the habit of going about
mile above the town fishing in the even
| ing, and setting a trot-line, which we would
| visit IN the morning. This morning he was to
visit the line alone, for fear the rebs might
pect something if they saw more than one start
out in skiff. They had no pickets ont, as they
Hdu dSdu SURE tHluS Vi dS one Vi
said to me as we were eating our breakfast
together at the hotel.
My friend was to go to the line, and, of
course, pretend to pay no attention to anything
but the fishing. The boat was due about
o'clock in the forenoon, and by him going
early there would be little or no notice paid to
him. There is an island little above town :;
and the steamboat channel was on the west side
of this island. My friend q have forgotten his
name; Comrade Lue Hamilton, of the S4th
III, and since the war Captain of the Rob Roy,
might remember it and tell us his name)
wanted TO get over on the east side OF this
island, so that his movements could not be seen
by the rebs, and when the boat came in hailing
distance he was to signal her and have her to
hold up till he could get to her and tell the
officers the trap she was about to run into.
The boat was at this point out of range of the
rebel gun hid behind warehouse). watched
and waited TO see the boat come in sight, for /
could see behind the head of the island from
the window by which my case stood. At last
l saw her come In sight, and presently / saw
her head little 10 the east and did not stop
till she got behind the island. "She is safe,
thank God" / thought; for / dare not speak,
for the rest of the boys and editor was all in
the same ROOM and all rank rebels. Presently
a cannon shot on the wharf was heard. All
was now excitement. Stores were closed and
everybody made for the river to see the rebs
capture the boat. But nothing but her smoke
could be seen above the trees of the island.
The editor. devil, compositors and all hands
left the Office and went to the river, myself with
the rest When the rebel commander Col.
Jim Porter, saw the boat go behind the island
he ordered the gunner TO give it to her.; but
it did no good; they could not reach her.
Then the question was asked by many, Who
went to give the warning?" No one knew.
Some were in favor of hanging some one.
Some wanted to shoot some one Some wanted
one thing and some wanted another AS for
me, ! wanted TO see Gen. Mcneil dash in and
: capture Col. Jim Porter and his whole mob OF
! bushwhackers, but / did not think it loud
, enough for any one to hear me; public opinion
was against me.
, During the excitement some one spoke about
"a feller running trot-line up there this morn
ing; who was he, and did he come back 2" Rec
; tor, the editor, came to me and asked me if e.
had come in from running your trot-line yet? y
/ told himI had not seen him. 1t soon got rumor-
J ed about that had hand in it. Soon crowd
gathered about me, and l thought for while
that my time had come He is from Illinois
and he is an Abolitionist. J" said one that knew
. l had come from Quincy. had letter Of
recommendation to Rev. Barrett from Hon.
Austin Brooks, editor of the Quincy Herald
, where had worked, and / guess that is all that
saved me- for Brooks told them ] was all right
: The excitement was intense; but about 12 o'clock
if was greater, for the alarm was given. "The
: Yankees are coming ~ was the cry on all sides
and the way those rebs got out of Canton was
l not slow. Col. Porter told the citizens he would
D have revenge for this the next time he came te
s Canton. The steamer came down as soon as the
/ rebs left town, but got no fish from that morn
S ing's run of the trot-line' My friend went
! on to Quincy and i think enlisted in the 84tf
: Ill.-Col. Waters's regiment. | staid and was in
! town when Col. Jim Porter came back, and wa!
q not far from Mr. Carnegie when he was mur
0 dered by one of Porter's men. On this visit t.
b Canton Porter's regiment was presented with
G rebel flag by the daughter of the widow lady
e was then boarding with, (as / left the hote
l. when j went to work for Rev. Barrett Mis-
0 Lucy -. will not mention her full name
| but Hon. James Green then u. S. Senator from
Missouri, was Miss Lucy's uncle, and offer
stopped at Mrs. IS house ON his way tt
# and from Washington City. | was still
q boarding with Mrs. when Hon. Jim Greer
e came home from Washington after Congress
d had adjourned, and remember how small
n body of rebel bushwhackers tried to captur,
: him. His brother, Mart Green, was Brigader
d General in the Confederate army, but Jim stood
o firm to the Union. The night Mr.. Carneg
:. was murdered the bushwhackers ransacket
g the town, robbed stores made the people cool
e meals for them, and raised the devil generally
Q and next morning after they got their flag pre-
g sented to them, they left town loaded will
7, boots, shoes, dry goods, tobacco, etc. ETC., will
t. about 300 boys in blue after them.
It There was an old bushwhacker by the nam,
:, Of Welch, who, while hidden in the bush, woult
5. shoot Union men when they passed his den.
d l would go home every two weeks to Quincy
E going on Saturday (if the boats made a landing
y and coming back to Canton Sunday afternoon
,r On one of these occasions son of this oil,
IT reprobate requested me to bring some gun cap
Ut from Quincy for his father, and gave me 5
d cents to make the purchase with. got tw
j. boxes of waterproof caps THAT being the kim
s. he wanted), and my mother, God bless hel
and ! put them in water that night and lie
Of them soak about 12 hours. We put them i
le pan and dried them in the stove, aud the
K, put them back in the boxes and fixed ther
he up all o. X. took them to Canton and CAV
TO them to the son, who took them to his father
but they would not go off. They reconed the
~ were damaged when bought them, and jus
e. let them keep reckoning
ne Not long after this Miss Lucy aud were talk
ns ing about the flag she had presented to Porter
h. men, and she told me that had slept on tia
%, flag for week before she gave it to the Cole
ig mel. was too hasty in my reply. / said 81
n ] had known that Col. Porter and his me
III would never have fought Or under it,!
no "Why not?" she asked. Il would have take
e. it to Quincy and given it to some Federal SO
Oh diers," i replied That was too much for he
re She told her cousin and he told me the ney
day had better get out Of there before Co
IL Porter came in town, for was still under sn
on picion of having had hand in saving the /