Western Kansas world. [volume] (WaKeeney, Kan.) 1885-current, 1906-10-20

triton was being applied in modern
warfare by a master hand and the big
stone finally wore out the little one
on the fateful field of Appomattox-
BY an act of the confederate con-
gress, February IL. 1864, all indepen-
dent organizations were abolished as
such, and the same were merged into
the regular service A proviso. how
ever, gave authority to the secretary
of war, when in his judgment the in
terests OF the service demanded, to
exempt from the operations of this
act any organization of the kind that
operated entirely within the lines of
the enemy" Under this proviso the
commands of Mosby and MCNEIL
alone, of all the independent forces
connected with the Army of Northern
Virginia, were exempted from the
operations of this act, and SO remained
until the final collapse of the southern
confederacy.
Mr.. John B. Fay has prepared the
following sketch of this famous troop,
whose exploits during the civil war
ELECTED especial praise from Jefferson
Davis and Robert E. Lee on more than
one occasion:
John Hanson Mcneil, a native of
/
pany and was its first commander
Being resident of Missouri, during
the early part of the war as captain
of mounted rifiemen, he performed gal
liant service in that state under Gen.
Price, and was prominent in the cap
ture of Mul1igan at Springfield. He
was soon after taken prison himself
and confined in st. Louis, but es-
capped thence and safely reached the
confederate lines in Virginia. There
he secured authority to enlist com
pany for Independent service in con-
lection with the brigade of Gen. I'm
boden, then in course of formation,
and his earlier exploits were per
formed while nominally under com
| mand of that officer.
when Imbotlen's command was
afterward mustered into regular serv-
| ice portion of McNeilTs men elected
to go with it and formed a new com
pany, which, under Capt. A. S. Scott
| became part of the Eighteenth Vir.
| GINA cavalry. The parent company
then reorganized with MCNEIL captain
and his son, Jesse G. Mcneil, Isaac S
| Welton, and Bernard J. Dolan first
second, and junior second lieutenants
respectively. The ranks of the new
company, because of its active and
daring achievements, were rapidly
| filled, and MCNEIL was soon at the
head of as gallant a body of men as
ever drew blades in fight. The com
pany rarely mustered more than Il
men for duty at any one time, but il
had during it's two years existence
nearly, if not quite, zoo names upo1
| its roster. The troop inflicted an i'm
mense amount of damage on the enc
| my during its brilliant career and kop
a large army on the qui vive to defenl
the long line of the Baltimore & OhiS
railroad and the upper Potomac Dor
der from it's daring incursions. 1t /.
| question whether Mosby, with fiv.
times the number of men, caused a.
much damage to the common foe a.
was inflicted by this single troop.
THAT Mcneil managed to keep hi.
opponents along the border in a con
slant state of anxiety and alarm Il
evidenced by the fact that Gen. Kelly
the union commander in his front
made incessant endeavors to crust
him, and in giving orders to subordi
nate officers invariably repeated hi
injunctions to KILL capture, or driv,
Mcneil out of the country adding il
one of his dispatches: We must d.
this before we can expect quiet O
safety along the line of road
Mcneil was a born partisan lead
er, and, like Mosby, could accomplish
more with a handful of men thai
many officers could with a regiment
Always on the alert, perfectly familia
with the country in which he ope1
ated, ever taking his foe unawares
striking swift and stunning blow
when and where least expected, re
sourceful in the face of greatest dar
ger, and never caught a-napping, Mo
Neill was a veritab1e wizard of tn
saddle, and well deserved the title @
, the Marion of the South Branch Va
ley the fairest land beneath the SUI
. and his favorite rendezvous"