The Washington herald., 1914-10-13


: one poor fellow named Long led bsfors
| the very eyes OF his mother. pleading
! Tor mercy for her boy-and hanged IKE
dogs upon hill on the outskirts OF
the villege. Upon their bodies, left swing.
ing by the roadside. was this pIacard
This shall be the fate OF all OF Mosby's
men
Here was a concrete example of the
horrors Of civil war. the more slgni-
hcant from the fact that after the war
the commander under whom these un.
fortunate men had fought. Col Mosby
and the commander who ordered the
hanging Of Mosby's men. Gen. Grant
became firm friends
The hanging OF Willis completed the
list OF reprisals on the Federal side
This occurred October a.
Ihe scene was at the NARROW farm,
near Gaines Crossroads. in Rappahan-
mock County. at the foot of the Blue
Ridge Young Willis had been taken
while conducting some Of Gen. Mosbv's
prisoners south from the Valley of the
Shenandoah.
His death was ordered by Gen. Powell
in retaliation for the killing Of a Fed
eral soldier twhose name is not given
in the official records by two men.
Chancellor and Myers
The soldier was a scout He had gone
ahead OF Gen. Powells column and had
been taken at the house Of Mr.. Chan
cellor, where he had represented himself
as an escaped Confederate prisoner Mos
oy's men were at hand-if Chancellor were
not one-and conceiving this man to be
spy they assumed the right. under the
rules OF war, to execute the sentence
OF death upon him. He was taken out
and shot.
does NhaE
hand in the killing. but being a Mosby
Ranger in the absence Of Chancellor
ana Myers he paid the penalty for it,
swung from a SapIInE.
The manner of this mans death was
thus described by an eye witness:
They selected a spot where stood a
tall' slender, white oak sapling, Man
aiter man ascended to the top, untfl
their weight bore it to the ground. where
they heid him firm until they pinioned
ms arms behind him and placed the hal
ter around his neck. Then making the
halter fast to the extreme end of the
sapling' at a given signal they stimuli
taneously relinquished their hold, when
ne could be seen, swinging back and
torth until the sapling had spent its
force. its lifeless body dangling in the
branches next to the trunk"
On the breast OF the body was pinned
placard: "A. c. Willis, member Of c.
{. Mosby's command, hanged by the
neck in retaliation for the murder of a
United States soldier by Messrs Chancel-
lor and Myers" The text OF this pIacard
is given to Gen. Powelrs report, in the
War Records
Gen. Powells report continues: Il also
sent a detachment with orders 10
destroy the, residence, barn, and all build
ings and forage on the premises of Mr..
Chancellor. and to drive OF all stock OF
every description, which orders were
Carried out"
Women and children may have suffered
by this act. which was held to be Justi-
fed by military necessity.
But these stern repressIve measures did
not lessen the activities OF Mosby's men.
They served rather to increase the wild
energy with which the Rangers pursued
their work
Mosby had been absent from his COM
mand. recovering from a wound, while
the first of the events here described
were taking place On his return he or
dered summary vengeance on the first
Federal cavalry prisoners taken. He had
a long score Of deaths now to avenge.
On November he chose seven men by
lot from a group OF Federal prisoners
FOR execution. Three were hanged, two
were shot, and two escaped.
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