Five Mile Beach weekly journal., 1916-08-18
MOSBY'S PRESENT
A Gift and Message That Ticklec
Lincoln'S Sense of Humor.
RETURNING THE COMPLIMENT.

An Equivalent That Mas Appreciated
and Treasured by the Confederate
Colonel An Episode Born of the
Capture of General S~toughton.
Colonel John s. Mosby, the southern
cavalry leader in the war between the
states, accumulated many mementos
of that long and bloody struggle, but
none which he treasured more jealous.
" than a lock of dark hair wrapped In a
faded yellow scrap of newspaper. The
hair was cut from the head of Abra.
ham Lincoln. 1t was Lfncoln's own
hand which cut it, and the great wal
president himself who sent it
In the spring Of 1863 the Army OF the
Potomac lay along the north bank of
the Rappahannock, about fifty miles
south of Washington The Intervening
country was, Of course, In the posses
sion Of the Union troops. OFF In the
recesses of the Blue Ridge mountains,
about thirty miles westward, vas
Colonel Mosby, with a body Of picked
southern cavalrymen, seeking to do
what injury he could to the Federal
outposts and lines of communication
About the middle of March there e
camped at Fairfax Court House, a VII
lage of about 500 inhabitants, halfway
between Washington and the army on
the Rappahannock, a force of several
thousand Union troops under General
Stoughton.
From a military point of view, his
camp at Fairfax was nearly as safe as
Boston. Between his w force and
the southern army, under General Lee,
lay General Hooker's great Army of
the Potomac. Even Colonel Mosby's
small force-less than a hundred men
was thirty miles away.
Nevertheless, Colonel MoSby deter.
mined to capture General Stoughton-
Selecting twenty of his best troopers,
he started one drizzly March afternoon
for Stoughton's camp. 1t was after
midnight when he ran into the first
picket, who was easily captured in the
darkness. And thus, taking picket aft
er picket In the black night, Colonel
Mosby made his way without alarm
into the village, until he entered Gen
eral St%oughton's bedchamber.
The unhappy officer was compelled
to dress and accompany his captors.
The pitch black, rainy night and the
fact that the men Of both commands
wore rubber capes of the same style
rendered it impossible for the prison
ers, Stoughton included, to determine
the number Of the enemy. With hall
a hundred prisoners and a hundred
horses, Colonel Mosby quietly made his
way out of the camp and was 500 be-
yond reach of pursuit.
The adventure created a stir in mill
tary quarters. Stoughton was roundly
censured for allowing himself thus to
be stolen from the midst of his troops,
although he was In nowise to blame
President Lincoln, whose of
humor nothing could quench, remark.
ed, when told of the affair, that he did
not mind losing the general but the
hundred horses were a serious matter.
II can make a general with the
scratch of a pen" he said dryly, "but
/ can't make horses"
Shortly afterward Colonel Mosby,
with a few companions, was recon
noitering in the vicinity of Washing
ton. On the road he encountered an
old Dutch market woman taking her
garden truck In her cart to pedde 1t
through the Washington streets Colo
mel Mosby stopped and questioned her.
Noticing a pair of scissors at her belt
and having heard of President Lin
coins comments ON General Slough
toms capture, he said:
do you know Mr.. Linco1n?"
"Yah," replied the old woman. "Seen
him often, l have"
Taking the scissors, Colonel Mosby
cut off a lock of his hair, and wrap
ping it in a piece of paper handed 1t
to the old woman, saying:
"I'm Colonel Mosby. When you get
to Washington go to the White House
and tell the president that Colonel
Mosby sent him this lock Of his hair
and say also that he is coming over
into Washington some night to get a
lock of the presidents hair"
Tne Old market woman Went ner
way, and Colonel Mosby rode back
and forgot the incident Some weeks
later, however, when making another
reconnaissance In that neighborhood,
the old woman hailed him from a road
side cottage. Hurrying into the cot
tage, she brought forth a scrap Of
newspaper and delivered it to Colonel
Mosby.
"Here ISIS a lock of President
Lincoln's hair" she said ale toit me
to say to you that he hat rather you
would not come offer to see him and
that he send it to you by me. Here it
iss?'-Youth's Companion.
As She Saw II.
"What is the meaning Of specter.