The daily Gate City and constitution-Democrat. (Keokuk, Iowa) 1916-1922, 1919-08-01


DAYS is the civil war that sta -ted
right here between Clark county,
MIssouri, and Lee county, Iowa, in
1889.
The governors of both states called
out the militia to tight each other,
and such men as Colonel William
Patterson and Colonel Thomas l..
Anderson composed the peace con-
ference which finally met at Water
Loom Clark county-and stopped
the warfare.
The sons and daughters of the
soldiers of this local war are organ
ized in Marion county, Missouri. ana
on the centennial of that county
this year they will sing at Palmyra
the Honey song which became fam
Gus in the Honey war
The Honey war is the historic
name of the war which occurred
right here where Keokuk and Alex
andria and Kahoka are now-al-
though Keokuk was then only point
and high bluff.
Was Fought for Honey.
! The Honey war, localized to the
west Of Keokuk, was over twelve
mile tract of wild timber land, fore
Swallowed the mighty conflict that
two decades later hurled Missouri
and Iowa men, tigerlike, at each
others throats.
| In the disputed territory were
many bee trees. This gave It's lame,
the Honey war" for both the pio-
neers in Iowa and Missouri adjacent
to the strip coveted the privilege Of
cutting the bee trees and securing a
supply of "sweetin."
Men of later age, who find sugar
in every store, may not be able to
understand the fight for the wild
honey, the only source of sugar then
for household use.
Slavery at the Bottom.
Despite it's title and absurd ending,
deeper reasons led Governor Lilburn
w. Boggs of Missouri, and Governor
Lucas of Iowa territory, to call out
the militia of state and territory to
march to repel invasion. BLACK /
Ivory" not golden honey, was the |
real issue. Some pioneers in the /
section held slaves, who would be I
freed if Iowa gained possession Of ,
the strip Their fellow slave owners |
in Missouri were in full sympathy 1
with their desire.
In August the sheriff of Clark !
county was taken prisoner by Iowa /.
militia when he was tax collecting In (
the disputed strip This stimulated |
the war spirit, and in November |
Governor Boggs of Missouri. called |
out the state militia. General David /
Wilcox, commanding the Fourteenth /
militia district. Palmyra man, and |
General o. Fl. Allen of Lewis county, |
were ordered to take the field. /
Colonel John Lear of the Fifty-sixth |
regiment, NJ s. G., and Capt. Thomas |
P. Stewart, Of Palmyra, called for |
volunteers to augment the regular
forces, and as the drum beat the long |
roll Palmyra men with rifles and
horses responded.
Rushing to Arms.
Soon 2,200 militia and volunteers
were on the march for Iowa with
more than fifty men from Palmyra
In the same spirit the Iowa free
soldiers rushed to arms and moved
out to hold the debated ground. On
December IL the Marion county men
started for Neutrality-suspicious. name
in Clark county.
The first night was one of torture.
Assa1led by rain and snow, without
camp equipment and supply wagons
on Upper North river, huge log fires
alone saved the men from freezing.
Another days march in the slush
roads and icy winds brought them
to another camp as bleak and forlorn
as the first camp.
The Peace Conference.
In this camp, on the Troublesome
creek, the peace messengers came.
Colonel Thomas L. Anderson, F. II.