Yorkville enquirer. [volume] (Yorkville, S.C.) 1855-2006, 1902-09-10
CLARK QUANTRELL.
A Story of the Missouri Border In
the Sixties.

A Story of the Missouri Border In
the Sixties.
The name of Clark Quantrell in the
years from 1861 to 1865 on the Missouri
and Kansas border struck terror into
all who heard it. Quantrell was ma
tive Of Ohio who went to Kansas at the
time of the war there between the Free
State men and the Shareholders. GUAM
trell took no part in those troubles, but
when the civil war broke out, and a
reign Of bloodshed existed on the Mis-
souri, and Kansas border, and In which
the Iawless Kansas Jayhawkers took
the opportunities offered by a great war
to wreak revenge on the Shareholders,
against whom they held grudges from
the old Kansas trouble, they murdered
Quantrell's younger brother. He then
raised a band of guerrillas and worked
bloody vengeance upon the murderers.
In the course of his operations he at
tackled at midnight, August rs 1863, the
town Of Lawrence, Kan, held by the
|Jayhawkers, who were organized guer-
rillas fighting on the side Of the United
States. With 300 men he stormed the
place, with a loss Of 80 of his followers.
He killed 191 and wounded 5S1 Of the
occupants of the place, and burned 1t to
the ground. This was only one, but the
most destructive of his raids. Recently,
ID dt1r
Quantrelrs band held a reunion, at
which some scores Of them were pres
ent They are all old men and are res
pectable citizens. Interviewed by men,
bers Of the press, they one and all de-
clared that he was a man Of mild and
gentle disposition, and was always.
One of the survivors, James M. Camp
bell, who lives in Kansas City, Mo-, was
interviewed by the st. Louis Post-Dis-
patch. He said: "Quantrell was the
smartest man ever knew. He had the
qualifications of leadership born in him.
He knew just what to do in every emer-
gency. In camp, he was gentle and
sometimes jolly. He was kind to his
men and to prisoners whenever he had
any. Quantrell never got excited not
even in a fight. He was as cool as
cucumber. They called him reckless,
but he never unnecessarily endangered
the lives of his men. And he could
shoot-ah, how that man could shoot!
I was with him regularly for nine
nff
a half longer. His men did not fear
him, and there was only one offense
for which he said he would have one
Of his followers taken out and shot.
Quantrell gave orders that any member
of his troop who insulted woman
should be shot. He said to us: NO
matter how much a woman may abuse
you, take her abuse. Let her talk and
ment. We are fighting men, not wo-
men. No provocation will excuse an in
suit or back talk to a woman And
you will find" concluded Campbell,
that no member of Quantrelrs COM
mand was ever accused of insulting a
woman. There were men on the other
side who were different"
History, as it is written by the men on
the other side, calls him bloodthirsty
demon, a merciless marauder, vandal,
desperate at the head of band Of
savages, plundering and slaughtering
under the cover of a state Of war.
There has never been a more ferocious
and fiendish warfare than that waged
by the Kansas Jayhawkers on the Mis-
souri, border, and Quantrell and his
band were it's products. They were
Missourians organized to defend their
own frontier, and to retaliate upon
their murderous foes. That the peo-
pie of Jackson county. the starting
point of the Quantrell men and one Of
the centres of their operations, regard