The Pacific commercial advertiser. [volume] (Honolulu, Hawaiian Islands) 1885-1921, 1908-07-12

Are the Mosby men long ivedf Hen
~ NJ. Withers, well known member
of the Kansas City bar, one of them
himself, says they are and he EXHIBITS
his own great frame to show that four
wears of the toughest sort OF rougn
riding and the succeeding forty odd
wears have not weighed heavily upon
him. General Mosby, himself, is alive
and hearty in San Francisco, where ne
is counsel for the Southern Pacific rail-
road, at seventy-fve years of age, spare
in fpure but alert as he was when ne
was capturing generals and keeping H.
600 federal troops busy trying to
"clean him OUT of the Shenandoah
valley and the Loudoun country.
Withers ran away from school, stole
a horse and sneaked out of his country
in the night to John Mosby. He was
lust fourteen years of age and was the
nineteenth "man'' to join the COM
mand. When the company grew so big
it had to be divided, young Wlthers
was the first man chosen by the second
captain, going into company B. Mos
by had about 700 men under his orders,
though he never went into fight with
more than 200. They were kept IN
their own district to harry the Union
troops, which were constantly maneuv-
ering over that part of the country.
Mosby's business was to capture high
officers for their exchange value, and
to get quartermasters trains and keep
a sharp eye out for paymasters. The
rangers kept what they got, one fight
declaring a cash dividend of $4,000, &C,
cording to history, but only $500 &C,
cording to the memory of Private With
ers. That was when the Mosby men
captured a train on which was a Union
army paymaster. He was found in the
baggage coach, hiding under rubber
poncho, not for his own personal safety
but for the safety of his treasure. The
paymaster knew he would not be killed.
There was found to be 100000 in his
chest. This was divided among each
ranger in the raid excepting General
Mosby, who took nothing.
KEPT ALL THEY FOUND.
"We were permitted to keep every
thing we found and for long time
were under the black flag said Mr..
Withers in relating some of his expert
ences as a Mosby raider. 81 went in
to the regiment on mule but the third
day, after my first fight, had real
good horse and an excellent pair Of
boots. We took everything in sight.
Hoops were worn by the. fashionable
women in those days. / recoIIect com
ing back from one raid with the neck
of every horse in the command wear
ing at least one set of hoops. -
Mosby' men never fought as regi-
ment. Instead of being kept in quar-
tiers, the men lived around, alone or
up to four of them, in the farm houses
Scouts would learn of the arrival of
Federals and a call would be sent for
the men to assemble at a certain place
There they organized and went on the
trail In the fight they fought each
man for himself, without any regard
whatever to tours right, right wheel,
deploy or anything else. They had two
orders. $50 ahead, boys and
" skedaddle. The skedaddle order
was always obeyed as the Mosby men
enlisted to fight, not to die.
Yet they did some hard fighting. Gen.
eral Sherman permitted Captain
Blazer to pick a regiment from 10000
men especially to "clean out Mosbv. -
and sent Blazer and his picked men
into the Shenandoah valley. Blazer
was from the Eighth Illinois cavalry.
and that regiment" said Mr.. With
ers, was composed of the flower of
fighting men of history. 1 never read
OF their superiors. If the war did
nothing else, it developed in that
Eighth Illinois cavalry regiment Of
which the two armies ought to be
proud. =
On one raid Blazer killed ten out of
fifteen of Mostly picket and caught
the other five. Several times he made
them take the skedaddle order. and
take it quick.
THE BLAZER FIGHT.
Gone day." said Mr.. Withers," Mos
: by said to my captain, L want Won
to go over there into the valley and
stay there till Blazer whips Won or
you whip Blazer, and Major Richard
son. my commander, took A and B com.
panles over to the side of the mcun- |
talns- We We're not there MANY. dave
'"i Blazer got wind of us and he caugbt |
t"o OF our scouts. one named Purvear |
he took Puryear off into the woods |
anu turned him over n n 7 ;,,,A.--..,. /