The Greenville journal. [volume] (Greenville, Ohio) 1850-1918, 1907-10-31
They Were Waiting to See Him Make
His Last Kick.

kansas, and the then headquarters of
the confederate forces in that part of
the southwest. Before reaching Little
Rock, Gen. Steel's forces joined with
a strong division of cavalry under
Gen. Davidson.
when Little Rock was reached,
after some skirmish fighting, the con-
federates promptly evacuated and our
forces took possession of the city and
surrounding country, and later pro-
ceeded to go into winter quarters.
After the farmers in the vicinity of
our camp realized that the 'Yanks'
had probably come to stay, many of
them came into our lines and volun-
tarily took the oath of allegiance to
the United States and took out what
were termed protection papers"
This was to protect them and their
property from confiscation or Yankee
foragers, and enabled them to sell
the products of their farms to the
soldiers at big prices, which they GER
tainly did.
"But unfortunately for this class of
would-be loyal citizens, Arkansas at
that time was, like Missouri, oyerrun
by semi-organized bands of guerillas,
or bushwhackers, as they were usual
ly called, who had no special respect
for God or man when their own per-
sonal interests were to the front.
These bushwhackers had annoyed our
troops all along the march from
Helena, seldom coming out in the open
to fight, but numbering every union
soldier whom they caught struggling
from his command.
"They continued to shadow our
picket lines, ambushing and murder,
ing one or two prominent officers of
our forces. They claimed to become
very angry with those of their fellow
citizens who had taken the oath of
allegiance, and made a specially of
burning the houses and barns of those
citizens, killing or driving off their
stock, ETC., and in every possible way
annoyed these men who had taken the
oath.
But they did not stop at the de-
s.ruction Of property, but took appar'
emily a devilish delight in numbering
the most prominent citizens of this
class of traitors, as they were pleased
to call them.
"One day, think in October, 1868,
one of our picket guards came gal
Looping into camp and reported that a
band of bushwhackers Il think under
a Capt. Jones), had just captured and
hung a prominent farmer just outside
our lines. The picket reported that
one of the farmers neighbors had
seen the band going to his neighbor's
home and, knowing this BODIED his
neighbor no good, made all possible
haste to cur lines and gave the
alarm.
Fortunately company of our cav
airy was on duty near this point. They
went out on the gallop, and, arriving
at the farmers home in the nick of
time, caught the bushwhackers red
handed in their murderous attack.
"They had taken the farmer out,
put rope around his neck and pulled
him up high and dry, ard were de-
liberately waiting to see him make
his last kick, when our cavalry came
down on them like bolt from a clear
sky.
Some eight or ten of them were
killed on the spot; some got away in
the bushes or on their horses, and ten
or a dozen were captured, among
them Capt. Jones and his lieuteant OF
the band.
When the charge of our cavalry
was made, someone cut down the sus.
pended citizen. His neck was not
broken and life was not extinct In his
body. He was finally restored, and in
few days he was able to appear on
the witness stand AGAINST his mur-
ierers.
The military authorities decided