Richmond dispatch. [volume] (Richmond, Va.) 1884-1903, 1894-04-08
MoSBY'S "cREENBAcK RAID"
Went Out TO Ditch = Train and Unex-
pectcdiy Captured Sf5O,OO0.
(New York Sum-

| (New York Sum-
| Mr. Charles Il. Grogan, OF the Southern
| Society. was a lieutenant in Mosby's COM
mand during the war; 1t only requires
a reference to the old guerrilla chief OF
to the famous raids In Loudoun county
| to remind Mr.. Grogan of story. anC
| the story Is always worth listening TO
| A few nights ago Mr. Grogan was asked
| by one of his friends:
| Did Mosby ever take any OF the plum
! der that was captured in those raidsY'
mo" he replied promptly. The never
| took "A cent of IT, / remember on one oc-
| casion. when he made n raid on rail-
road train, and captured $4,000. The
money was divided among the men
share and share alike. but Mosby did not
take cent OF It. Perhaps you never
heard the story"
OF course, no one had ever heard 1t in
detail before and Mr.. Grogan, after re-
| fleeing TO recall the incident, told II as
| follows:
The raid is known through the
South as the 'greenback raid 1t was
near Dufield Station, on the Baltimore
| and Ohio railroad. between Baltimore
and Martinsbure. There were about
sixty-five OF us. with Mosby himself IN
command. We took II into our heads 10
ditch n train, thinking that we'd IND
one full OF Yankees going to the front.
We hadn't the slightest idea what kind
of luck we were going to have. or what
we would encounter
I'VE selected a spot where the railroad
ran between two steep banks. There
were two tracks there, and we tore up
one Of them. | forget which. Presently
a train came along on the other track
and passed us. To take no chances.
we at once tore up the other track. Then
we hid ourselves at the top OF the en-
bankment and waited.
Presently a train came along-I think
Il was moving westward-and we all got
I'D and watched Il. When il came to
the spot where the rails were torn the
engine quietly turned over--osA her side
and fell against the embankment The
whole thing was over In a few seconds
without a bit of noise or fuss Nobody
was hurt except the fireman. who was
killed. ! believe. The cars all remained
standing.
"Our men at once went through the
cars and ordered everybody out. There
were a great many immigranta- on the
train, and we had a hard time explaining
10 them that we wanted them to get out
Of the cars. We noticed two men who
baggage. one had a tin box and the
other a carpetbag. We relieved the gen
tlemen of their burdens and TO our great
surprise we found the bag and box full
Of greenbacks and treasury notes. 1t
turned out that the two men We're pay
masters going 10 the front with money
for the army.
when we got this money, Mosby put
1t In my charge and told me TO get across
the river with it as fast as ] could. Two
men and myself Immediately set out for
Loudoun county with the money, and
rode hard all night. ] remember distinct
ly that one of the horses slipped. and the
rider was thrown to the ground scat
tering the greenbacks he carried right
and left. l remember. too, that the
other man and myself laughed while he
picked up the money, and teased him.
The next morning Mosby and the
others caught up with us, and we all
stopped under tree and divided the
money. The money, l believe, amounted
TO about $4,000. We weren't very enthu
siastic about 1t, because we didn't know
II was good for anything or not. The
Treasury notes were fresh from the mint.
and some of them bore coupons. The
men called il money with tales to II. Mos
by insisted on the money being divided
equally among the men, but he did not
take a cent.
II do not remember how many pris-
oners We're took. one of our men. J.
Monroe Huskell, gave $50 of his money
TO a major whom he had captured. Some
over-zealous guerrilla had relieved the
major of his overcoat, his pocketbook.
and his small change"