The Butler weekly times., 1897-09-30
FEDERkLS ALMOST WIPED OUT.
Swept Away by One Terrific Charge Of tn
Guerrilas Massacre, Says

oWept AWAY Dy Une le'fihC IhdISe W the
Guerrillas-Not Massacre, Says
James.
Ceptrslia. Mo, Sept. 20 5-The
day that Frank James walked up
the steps of the State capitol at JET.
ferson City. banded over his revol
vers and surrendered, he closed his
lips to all that pertained to bis past.
Whether bis thoughts have often
turned TO those exciting days when
he was en- actor in so many bloody
scenes or not he has never seen tit
to talk about them. Thousands OF
people perhaps have tried to get
Frank James to tell of his adven-
lures and have failed.
But at last the long silence has
been broken. The other day be
talked about the battle Of Centralis,
one of the most sapguinary conflicts
of the civil war 1t was the first
time in all these years that he has
told anything of the days when bis
revolver barrels and those of bis
companions were always hot.
| Frank James has been attending
several of the Mis S ouii fairs. He
acted as starter for the races at the
Boone county fair. and was the CEN
ter of attraction. He has been
meeting many people whom he had
known years ago. He has been in a
couotry every foot of which was
familiar to him. He has been every
place right royalty welcomed aud
treated with Missouri hospitality
1t is not strange that under these
clrcums stances the silent man opened
his lips and chatted about events Of
which be knows more than any ltv
, ing man
The ether day he, Mayor Nj. s
Bush of Centralia, j. X. Pool o
. Centralia and Walter Williams o
Columbia drove together over tn
GROUND that had been watered b.
, the blood of so many Union soldiers
It was the first time James had bee
over the Centralia battle groun
p since ths fight, or massacre, as som
call il, aud naturally he talked
o the happenings of that awful day.
The tragedy OF Centralia occure
on the afternoon of Tuesday, Sep
81, 1864. Nearly 200 Federal sold
o iers, commanded by Major A. V. I
9 johnson Of the Thirty ninth Nilsson
, ri infantry, riding out after guerri
+ Lac, met Captain Bill Anderson an
4 Captain George Todd, with %
men Scarcely dozen Of the Fe'
ersl Soldiers escaped with their live
q while of the guerr:llas only tw
were killed and one mortally woun'
:, ed. There is nowhere in the histoi
of the world a record CT a chare
more destructive than that made {
d that far September afternoon. e
D. cry man in the Federal line of bait
a, perished. and only half a score
thoss left to hold the horses 6
=. away. The conflict has been d
: scribed by surviving Union soldie
=. and by citizens af Centralia who "
, messed the battle from q diseant
but not until now has one OF &
chief actors On the Confederate si
g given his version.
it There is the spot" said Fra
James, two miles and more fro
Csntralia. shortly before the ma
road was left for broad lane. "Yc
:, der on the ,ise near the hay rick "
the liue OF the Federal troops. Jr
this side, toward Centralis. sto
: the detachment which held tn
= ho, ss. On the edge of the WOO
= beyond our men formed"
: His memory served him we'll.
y. had not been to the field before Z
since the day Of the fight, thir
three years ago next Monday.
all word had been spoken to indies
pg the locality. But he remember
We accurately the entire surrounding
81 can CO." be said, Ito any bait
field where I was engaged and p
out almost instantly the locations.
CUES it's the closeness to dc:
which photographs the scene