The Anderson intelligencer. [volume] (Anderson Court House, S.C.) 1860-1914, 1904-02-10
WAR STORIES.
w. II. KEENAN, Recalls Surrender Of Prices
ArllN.
St Louis Republic.
Mexico Mo. BY aud gallant men
ativc Viii kcnna intl,r

,arcr. Of the ex Confederate Home It
iligriusvlle, tc!l~ an interesting story
of the last days of the CDnfcdcracy,
or rather &c Tie ir,t day, of the re.
eons,rurtion Mr. N"uuan was sta
toned with his conmind near Shrcvr.
port a, the time of the 81 rend,r. and
he aud his men at one time consider
ed the matter OF trivcIin4 to D.d Mex.
co ami locating, rather than return
home under the sting Of defeat Mr..
NcDnan said this week thai he had
never seen q correct story Of the in
cidents Of the surrender of his por-
tion Of the defeated army, which wa
under General John B Clark, who
later died in Congress.
Mr.. kennan says: ~ served as pri-
vate, Corporal and Sergeant, winding
up four years service as Adjutant Of
. Missouri battalion, with the rank
and pay of First Lieutenant Of in
Santry, inthe Confederate army, Trans
Mississippi Department.
General lE. Kirby Smith. at the
time OF tho surrender of the depart
ment in tho latter part Of May, 1865,
was supposed 80 be in command, with
headquarters at Shreveport, La. Gen
eral Sterling Price and General S. b.
Buckper were subordinate to General
Smith Parsons and Clark Mis-
scarf brigadcs, together With several
Ar&ansae and Texas brigadcs Of in
fantry, were cncampcd at and around
Col'insbuFg, La, small village about
thirty miles northwest Of Shreveport,
when the news Of Lincoln s assassina-
sion and the surrender OF General
lee reached the army through gen
eral order which was read to the troops
while on dress parade.
Here will add that when the
order announcing the death of Mr..
Lincoln was read there was not n
word Of exultation escaped the lips Of
single soldier. On the contrary, a
deep shadow of sorrow fell instantly
upon the entire army. This express
sion was no atfectalion, the soldiers
felt in their hearts what they so plain
ly exhibited in their faces Somcho ow
they seemed to feel instinctively that
in the assassination Of Mr.. Lincoln
shey had lost a friend. AS Adjutant
Of the battalion | took the order an.
nouncng the death Of MIR. Lincoln
and draped it with HACK lines, leaving
it in my desk, which l left in camp
when we surrenderd.
shortly after this the army march
cd to Shreveport and cncamped in a
grove of timber that fringcd the city
on it's western border and where wood
and water abounded. General Joseph
X. johnson in command Of tho rem
nant of the Confederate Army east of
she Mississippi river, had not surrcn-
dered, and there was talk among the
men and officers Of keeping up the
struggle indefinitely and Of johnson
crossing the river with what was left
of his army, joining US and taking
eommsnd with the view of holding
Louisiana and Texas. No definite
action was taken to this end, and
abort time after reliable news came
that all Of the Confederate forces east
Of the Mississippi river had surren-
dered, laid down their arms and re-
turned paroled to their homes.
"At this Intelligence ell hopes of
prolonging tho struggle vanished, it
being demonstrated that any further
effort woald De futile. The most ex-
ceIlent discipline which had prevailed
among the soldiers up to this time and
which had rendered them almost in
vincible in battle, instantly faded
away like dew before the morning sun.
Soldiers who were perfectly obedient
to every command of their off a
moment before the news of johnson g
surrender were, moment after, so
quickly was the change perceptible, to
be controlled only by the kiudest and
gentlest persuasion. The Texans and
She Arkansans, to man, without or
aers or leave, With their guns acd
what they could gather from the ord
nance stores and the depleted com-
smissary, left hurriedly for their homes,
which were not far away.
Remaining was an army of several
thousand Missourians, including the
commands of general Shelby and G en-
eral M1imaduke, who we're now
gathering in and about Shreveport,
eight hundred miles from their
homes. The nearest Federal military
post was more than hundred miles