The Oskaloosa herald. (Oskaloosa, Mahaska County, Iowa) 1885-1919, 1909-08-26
THE SKUNK RIVER WAR.
An Interesting Incident In Local History.

Adams, had a preliminary nearing be-
fore a Justice of the peace, and were
bound over In the sum of $1,000 each
for their appearance at the next term
of the district court siThe army OF
the Skunk was dispersed and Col,
Chipman's forces sent home, and 1t
was supposed that the affair was end |
ed. But during the night another
mob of nearly one thousand men gath |
cred on the Skunk river bottom near
Sigourney and threatened to march
on that place and destroy 1t unless
the men hound over at South English
were Immediately brought to Slgour-
ney and placed on trial. there was
great excitement in Sigourney, the
business houses were closed and near
ly every man turned out to defend
the place. There was no railroad or
telegraph line to Sigourney at that
time.
Mr.. Sanders, the clerk of the court,
drove to Washington and took an en-
CINE from there to Muscatine, where
he got into telegraph communication
with Governor Kirkwood. | went back
on the engine and drove to Sigourney
finding the town in a state of great
excitement, patroled by company OF
home guards, only half of them armed.
The town was filed with ugly, scowl-
ing, armed rioters from the rendez-
vous on the SKUNK river and things
looked pretty squally.
! During the night Governor Kirk
,, wood came in from Washington, &C
companied only by Col. Trumbull, OF
his staff, afterwards colonel of the
9th cavalry. They drove direct to the
court house and Governor Kirkwood
at once proceeded to make a speech.
1t is only once in lifetime that
man is permitted to hear such
speech, and especially to sucn an
audience under such circumstances.
| The grand old man seemed to be in
spired; he was utterly fearless, al
though apparently in imminent danger
from the rough crowd that sur
| rounded and threatened at times to
| hang him, Kissing curses at him,
which, however, failed to interrupt
his speech. And such a speech!
| Its like never came from the mouth
of any other governor of any state
| 1t was far from ladylike, in fact would
| hardly do for publication, but was
| vigorous, verile and to the point, fill
ed with good old English and inter
| spersed with an occasional round
mouth filling epithet as he referred
to the rebels. 1t was exhilerating, ex-
citing, but fearsoTne to see that rug
| ged, fearless, earnest, grand man
standing up in the middle OF the night
| hurting denunciations and threats to
| such a mob. He told them that he
had come to see that the law was en-
forced; that the people of South En-
| glish would be fairly tried and II
guilty, punished, but not by such a
scoundrelly mob as confronted him;
that he had reason to believe that
they were drawn together, not so
| much to punish crime or to see that
it was punished, as to throw obstacles
in the way of the government in put
ting down the rebellion; that he didn't
propose to nave any fire-in-the-rear
rebellion in Iowa; and unless they
disappeared before morning he would
/ have them shot down like dogs; that
he had ordered troops which were on
the way, and when they arrived the
next day they would shoot, and shoot
straight, and shoot leaden bullets,
not blank cartridges: that he would
put down this mob If he had to kill
every mothers son of thenl-although
that was not exactly the name he ap
/ piled, but it would not be polite to
give it verbatim.
| His appearance and bravery cowed
them and they commenced to slinR
away, and before the Governor would
go to bed most of them had left town
The next morning company came In
from Muscatine, and during the day
i others arrived from Mt. Pleasant
II Washington and other towns, and by
Il evening there were ten companies OF
militia quartercd in and around the
town and the mob had entirely dissol
we'd and gone home.
have always thought that there
would have been bloodshed If Cover
nor Kirkwood had not fearlessly met
the crisis. f.
! A number of the rioters were arrest
ed and bound over, charged with ex
citing a riot, but they, together with
the South English prisoners, were
/ released and all prosecution was
i wisely dropped at the next term oil
| the court.