Part 6 (2/2)

In the angs headed by the Jaers, who operated in Quantrell's wake and in sed Scouts to serve the Federal Governuide and scout with the Ninth Kansas Cavalry The Kiowas and Co the old Santa Fe trail and a the settlements of western Kansas The Ninth Kansas were sent to tarants and settlers

This ork that I well understood We had a lively su, but after a su we made them understand that the Great White Chief was a power that the Indians had better not irritate November, '63, I returned with the command to Leavenworth I had money in my pockets, for my pay had been 150 a month, and I was able to lay in an abundant supply of provisions for my family

On the twenty-third day of December my mother passed away Her life had been an extremely hard one, but she had borne up bravely under poverty and privation, supplying with her own teaching the education that the frontier schools could not give her children, and by her Christian exah life

Border ruffians killed her husband, alht of her home

She passed h to provide for her, often suffered from direst poverty Yet she never co for her children and the sufferings that were visited upon theh and wild country

My sister Julia was nows of an adventurous nature and go whereIn January, 1864, the Seventh Kansas Volunteers ca since the early years of the war A them I found er under promise not to take part in the war and I enlisted as a private

In March of that year the regiment was embarked on steamboats and sent to Memphis, Tennessee, where we joined the coanizing an arht the illiterate but brilliant Confederate General Forrest, as then reat deal of trouble in southern Tennessee

While ere iment recommended me to General Smith for membershi+p in a picked corps to be used for duty as scouts, ers, and dispatch carriers Colonel Herrick recounted my history as a plainsman, which convinced the commander that I would be useful in this special line of duty

When I reported to General Smith, he invited me into his tent and inquired ht to be able to render me valuable service,” he said

When I replied that I should be only too glad to do so, he got out a map of Tennessee, and on it showed me where he believed General Forrest's command to be located His best inforhborhood of Okolona, Mississippi, about two hundred uise myself as a Tennessee boy, to provide myself with a farm horse from the stock in the ca accoather all the inforth in men and equipment and defenses, and to make my way back as speedily as possible

General S, and he showed on road he planned to follow, so that I ht knohere to find him on my return He tolderous

”If you are captured,” he said, ”you will be shot as a spy”

To this I replied that erous, as capture ly undertaken them

”Do you think you can find Forrest's ar as that you're a rimly

General Se of as called ”the refuge herd,” froe Tennessee farm horse This , for which I exchanged:

”Look out, young fellow You're taking a dangerous trip” Then we shook hands and I began my journey

I had studied carefully the map General Smith had shown me, and had a fairly accurate idea of the direction I was supposed to take Following a wagon road that led to the south, I ht Thecaroes'

houses, just ahead ofto work, and therefore rode boldly up to the house of the overseer and asked if I could get rest and some sort of breakfast

In response to his inquiries I said I was a Tennesseean and on s I used my best imitation of the Southern dialect, which I can still use on occasion, and it was perfectly successful I was given breakfast, my mare was fed, and I slept ain immediately after dinner

Thereafter I had confidence inno effort to fall into conversation with people, I did not put myself out to evade anyone whom Ia Northern spy

At the end of a few days I saw that I was near a large body of troops

It was in theto approach the outposts looking weary and fagged out, I rested for an hour, and then rode up and accosted one of thee I said I was a country boy, and had come in to see the soldiers My father and brother, I said, were fighting with Forrest, and I was almost persuaded to enlist uard and I was passed A little farther on I obtained per to the Confederates and, afoot, I proceeded to the ca the part of the rural Tennesseean, ro food-stands, and staring open-reat deal of infor under suspicion