The Hocking sentinel. [volume] (Logan, Ohio) 1871-1906, 1901-05-16
SOLDIERS STORIES.
ENTERTAINING REMINICENCES
OF THE WAR.
Graphic Account of Stirring Scenes
Witnessed on the Battlefield and in
Camp-Veterans of the Rebellion Re-
cite Experiences of Thrilling Nature.

of General Funston's operations in the
capture of Aguinaldo. They seem to
believe that the stratagem resorted TO,
in which general officer masqueraded
as a prisoner in charge of native sol
diers dressed as and pretending to be
rebels, did not comport with the dig
nifty of Brigadier General In the
American army. The truth Is that
General Funston did not go so far In
the way of disguise and deception as
our own officers in the civil war did in
hundreds Of cases in which they pene-
trated the Confederate lines.
1T was n common practice for the
scouts and raiding parties of both
armies in the civil war To employ all
sorts of stratagems and disguises TO
get information from the enemy and to
capture important persons or military
posts. When General Gordon made
| his first visit TO Chicago l was one Of
the committee appointed to receive
him, and General Crook was another.
In the course of the conversation be-
tween Cnionists and Confederates on
1
stories came out. one of them relating
to the capture of General Crook him
self In 1864
Previous TO the capture of Crook.
General Sheridan heard through his
| spies and scouts that Harry Gilmore.
the dashing Confederate guerrilla, was
| holding "A camp meeting about ninety
| miles southwest of Winchester, the pur
pose of which was to enlist n number
of men for the Confederate service.
Sheridan directed Colonel II. X. Young
to take twenty of his best men. dress
| them in Confederate uniforms, repair
| to the point where Gilmore was housed
| and capture him. The plan was to
have this detachment of alleged Con
federates followed by 800 vavalry under
Colonel Whitaker
Colonel foung's men were to pre-
tend that they We're Marylanders going
to join Gilmore. and that they We're
being pursued by a strong battalion of
Union cavalry. Acting the part to
perfection, they were welcomed by
Gilmore's men, and Young was taken Mt
once to Gilmore's room. Gilmore was
found in bed. and when he awoke, he
looked into the barrel of a revolver
Young informed him that he was
prisoner of one of Sheridan's staff, or
dered him to dress without delay, and
he was hustled out of the camp.
"Gilmore's men, like Aguinaldo's,
learned of th edeception that had
been played upon them AMI attempted
to rescue their leader. Then up came
Colonel Whittaker's cavalry and the
rebels were scattered or captured.
Gilmore was carried a prisoner over
the long route to Winchester and was
sent from there TO Fort Warren. The
camp meeting came to an abrupt
close, and most of the men who had
attended 1t and who had enlisted in
the Confederate service returned to
their homes.
'Out Of this bold exploit by Colonel |
Young came the capture of General
Crook. Some Of Gilmore's men, who |
had been managing his camp meeting.
Joined the guerrilla band of Jesse Nc |
Neil. When they told their story to
Mcneil. he swore that he would pay |
the Unionists back in their own coin,
He organized a company of bold fell |
lows, among whom was James Daily,
the brother of the lady whom General |
Crook afterward married, and made a
dash into Cumberland. At 3 o'clock |
on the morning of the 21st of February,
--sr l..
quietly to the hotel in Cumberland |
where Generals Crook and Kelly were |
sleeping, took them out Of bed, and |
carried them off to Richmond. A
troop Of Union cavalry gave hot chase,
striving to intercept the Confederate
party at Moorefield, where Gilmore had \
been captured. But they failed.
General Crook was not held prison
er for 4 very long time, and he returned
TO take command of his division and |
participate in the engagement that |
broke the Confederate power in the
Shenandoah valley, but he was always
reluctant to refer to his capture in
Cumberland, and not one of his staff |
would talk on the subject. After the
Generals death in Chicago several Of |
us went on TO the place of interment ut |
Oakland. Md. Among those present |
Were Colonel NOW Adjutant Generan
Corbin, Major Randall. DIR. +. II. Bart
lett, who had been present at the we'd
ding of General and Mrs. Crook, and |
three soldiers of the Confederacy. who
had formed part of the detachment that
captured General Crook at Cumber-
land. These three men asked as a
privilege that they be permitted to par
ticipate In the funeral ceremonies.
Their names, as l remember them.
were May, johnson and Mason, and |
they all had stories to tell not only of |
the capture Of Crook but of Colonel
Young's bold exploit in capturing
Harry Gilmore.
These are only sample cases. II
the Unionists disguised rs Confeder-
ates or COnfederates disguised as
Unionists had been captured, they
would have been shot. If General
Funston and his men had been cap
tured, although they wore the Ameri-
can uniform of private soldiers, they
would have been shot. In all such
expeditions, the men who engage in
them understand the risks.-Chicago
Inter Ocean.
A Little Over a Thousand.
When General Burnside was COIN
manding in East Tennessee he was in
vited to dinner by an elderly farmer.
The invitation was accepted. At the
table sat the mother of the host.
lively old lady, but in appearance ex-
tremely old. Mother" said the Gen
eral, may ! ask your age? You ap-
pear quite old for n person who can