The Mt. Sterling advocate. (Mt. Sterling, Ky.) 1890-current, 1895-07-30

charge at Five Forks or Ssilor'eCreek
AT that time Gen. Green Clay Smith
now Of Frankfort. KY. was a repre-.
sentative in congress from Kentucky
He saw what was going on, witnessed
the preparations being made to usher
into eternity the helpless and innocent
Confederates in the old capitol, and
realize what terrible deed it would
be for mob to hang, shoot or kill 30C
or 400 helpless men on the streets OF
Washington, who were innocent OF
any completely in the assassination OF
Mr. Lincoln, procured the services OF
two or three friends to hold the mob
in hand by speaking until he could
see Secretary Stanton and provide
some means, if possible, to protect the
prisoners from the rage of the mob
His friends, God bless them, whoever
they were and wherever they are, re-
sponded promptly, mounted box on
the streets and addressed the mob
When one had said all he could say,
another followed him, and 50 on, oc-
cupying half an hour, perhaps an hour.
thus giving Gen. Smith time to see
Mr.. Stanton.
Gen. Smith went, or rather ran, TO
the war office, rushed in and found
Mr. Stanton's private office door lock-
ed, He knocked again and again
without response. Finally Gen.
Smith made himself known and WA
admitted. He says that Stanton was
overcome with excitement, was armed
and without doubt greatly frightened
Gen. Smith told him briefly of what
was going on in the streets ana
begged for troops to protect the uu
armed prisoners from the mob. Mi.
Stanton told him so 90 and do as he
thought best" Gen. Smith left III B
run, soon found a battalion of troops
in the streets, took charge of them.
rushed them to the capitol, arriving
just in time to place them between its
walls and the emraged mob--juot in
time to save from terrible death
some 300 or 400 helpless Confederate
prisoners.
During the night the prisoners sus,
pected that something unusual was
going on. though they had not the
slightest idea of what it was. Guards
were doubled, troops we've marching
horses were ga'loping all night, all Of
which they could hear. Next morn.
ing at daylight we were told by the
guard that Mr.. Lincoln had been shot
in Ford's Theater and was dead: that
Mr.. Stewards throat had been cut and
he was dying; that mob was Oh
hand to destroy us, We looked out
through the windows and saw files Of
soldiers with fixed bayonets, artillery
unlimberedsin the streets and loaded
cavalry with drawn sabers, and a mol
whose very look was appalling.
Our feelings can be imagined, but
they cannot be described. The writer
of this went out in the gray light Of
the morning in the back yard to gel
some water at the pump but he could
not drink. He tried to wash his face
and hands, but he could not. He sal
down upon an old trough, placed his
head in his hands, absorbed in thought
aud weeping, until friend touched
him on the shoulder and asked him
what was the matter.
The mob fingered about the prison
several hours before it broke. Its dis.
persion lifted a load from the bosoms
of the prisoners that had weighed
them down to the ground. On the
Sunday following the prisoners LEFT
for Johnston's Island, Lake Erie
where they were kept until grim.
visaged war had smoothed its wrin.
killed. front in all parts of the Confeder,
ate states.
To Gen, Green Clay Smith, then
representative in congress from Ken.
lucky temperance candidate for Pres
'ident in 1876, at present pastor of the
Baptist church'in Mount Sterling, Ky.
and gentleman of the noblest impul-
ses and finest nature, the Confederate
prisoners in the old Capitol at Wash
ington, on April ID, lS65,are Indebted
for their lives. But for his exertions
they would have suffered the most
horrible deaths-death by hanging,
shooting and burning by an Infatuated
mob. There were not thousand men
i'm Washington that night who Would