The 1st Ill. Cav., Col. Thos. A. Marshall, and fragments of Home Guard regiments in process of organization, were drawn back to Lexington, in face of the advance of Price's columns. There was also a mongrel field battery, consisting of one 4-pounder, three 6-pounders, one 12-pounder and two little 4-inch howitzers, the latter being useless on account of having no shells.

The cavalry was only armed with pistols and sabers.

No official Union reports are on file as to the affair, but the total strength of the garrison is given unofficially at from 2,640 to 3,300. The correspondent of the Missouri Republican gives these figures:

Col. Mulligan assumed command of the whole by seniority of commission. He was an Irishman with all his race's pugnacity, and also its effervescence. He was born in Utica, N. Y., in 1830, had graduated from a Roman Catholic college, studied law, and edited the principal Roman Catholic paper in the West, "The Tablet."

Lexington, which is the County seat of Lafayette County, was a very important place in frontier times, and the center of the great hemp-growing region of Missouri. It is situated on the south bank of the Missouri River, about 300 miles by its course above St. Louis, and about 84 miles below Kansas City by water, or 42 miles by rail. It consisted of two towns, Old and New Lexington, about a mile apart, having altogether about 5,000 people. It had some manufactories and two or three colleges, one of which, the Masonic College, situated on high ground between Old and New Lexington, a half mile from the river, was taken by Col. Mulligan for his position, which he proceeded to fortify with high, substantial works to accommodate 10,000 men, inclosing about 15 acres on the summit of the bluffs. Between 2,000 and 3,000 horses and other animals of the trains were gathered inside this inclosure.

A week before Col. Mulligan's arrival, on Sept. 9, Gov. Jackson had briefly set up his Capital there, and held a session of that portion of the Legislature which adhered to him. The approach of Col. Pea-body caused a precipitate adjournment, and there was left behind $800,000 in coin, which was buried in the cellar of the college, with the great seal of the State of Missouri.

At dawn on Sept. 12, Gen. Price, riding with his advance, Rains's Division, struck the Union pickets stretching through the cornfields outside of Lexington, but though he brought up all his infantry within reach, and McDonald's, Guibor's, and Clark's batteries, his heads of columns were beaten back everywhere by the stubborn Union soldiers, who had been waiting three days for him, and he wisely decided to withdraw two or three miles and wait for the rest of his forces and ammunition wagons to come up.

Col. Mulligan telegraphed to Col. Jeff C. Davis, at Jefferson City—120 miles away—the fact of Price's advance and his need for help, and Davis sent the news to Fremont, who ordered forward three regiments and two batteries to Davis, and directed him to reinforce Mulligan, which he could do by rail and river. Fremont also sent orders to Pope and Sturgis to help Mulligan out, but there was not much urgency in the orders, and each of his subordinates seems to have taken his own time and way of obeying or not obeying.

Jeff C. Davis had at that time something over 5,000 men at Jefferson City, and subsequent reinforcements raised this number, it was claimed, to 11,000—certainly to 8,000. Davis afterward became a valuable division and corps commander, but he certainly did not show up well in this transaction. He, also, had too much of the "Regular" in him. He complained of a lack of wagons and harness, commissary supplies and ammunition, to enable him to make a forward movement. He had none of the spirit of Lyon and Price, to impress teams and supplies and make means to do what ought to be done.

It was harvest time in that fertile part of Missouri, and his army need not have suffered for food, wherever he went. But all that he did was to send forward a couple of regiments to occupy points and prevent the Secessionists from crossing the river at those places. They had all either crossed or found other unguarded places.

Pope showed similar incapacity. He had 5,000 men in easy reach of Lexington, but he was more engrossed in the Hannibal & St Joseph Railroad and in matters in Keokuk and Canton than in Lexington. He telegraphed to Gen. Fremont that he would move forward 4,000 men to Lexington, and actually did send forward Lieut.-Col. Scott with the 3d Iowa and Robt. F. Smith with the 16th 111., with instructions to form a junction at liberty, in Clay County, and then proceed to Lexington. Lieut-Col. Scott pushed on to the Blue Mills Landing on the Missouri River, where he came in contact with a large Secession force. Six regiments of the Missouri State Guard were there, making their way to Lexington.

D. R. Atchison, former Senator from Missouri, President of the United States Senate, and of much notoriety during the Kansas and Nebraska troubles, took command of this force and attacked Col. Scott, compelling rapid retreat. Atchison reported to Price the usual story about the small number under his command and the large force of the Yankees routed, but this does not harmonize with his praises to Cols. Sanders, Patten, Childs, Cundliff, Wilfley, and Maj. Gause, each of whom he says handled his "regiment" with great gallantry.

Col. Smith met Col. Scott in his retreat, learned from him the overwhelming force in front, and retreated with him, so that portion of the relief came to naught.

Gen. Sturgis moved forward from Mexico with about 4,000 men and reached the Missouri River, but finding no means for crossing, and surveying the host that was gathered around the city, retired with such haste as to leave his tents and camp equipage.

Gen. Price proceeded with astonishing deliberation, when we consider that he must have known that Fremont had something over 20,000 men within striking distance.

Retreat was still open for Col. Mulligan, as he had two steamboats at his command, but he felt that his orders obliged him to remain in Lexington for the protection of much public property which had been gathered there, and that as his situation was known to Gen. Fremont, relief would be speedily sent to him.

In the meantime, every hour had swelled Gen. Price's forces. Some of the Secession writers have claimed that there were actually as many as 38,000 men gathered in his camps. Of course, a large proportion of his force was useless unless to help beat off a relieving column, because, owing to the small extent of the position occupied by Col. Mulligan, only a limited number of men could be employed against it, and 10,000 were as effective as 100,000. A very large portion of Gen. Price's forces were men who flocked to his camp as to a picnic or a barbecue, because something was going on, and they fell away from him again when he began a backward movement, as rapidly as they came.

Then ensued for six days a very strange battle. Swarms of Missourians crowded the ravines in the bluffs, behind trees, stones, the walls, fences and chimneys of the houses, and whatever else would afford adequate protection, and kept up an incessant fusillade upon the garrison safely ensconced behind thick banks of earth. When a squad occupying a secure shelter grew tired, or had fired away all its ammunition, it would go back to camp for dinner, when their places would be taken by others eager to share in the noise and excitement and have a story to take back home of the number of Yankees who had fallen under their deadly aim. If all these stories of the men "who had been at Lexington" could have been true, more men would have been sent to the grave than answered Lincoln's call for 500,000 volunteers. The artillerists were as enthusiastic and industrious as the men with "Yager" rifles and shotguns, and banged away with unflagging zeal and corresponding lack of mortality. The walls of the college were badly scarred, but the worst effect was that an occasional shell would take effect among the horses, and drop on the ground carcasses which speedily putrified under the hot sun, and added an unbearable stench to the other hardships of the garrison.

This went on day and night, for the moon was bright, and there was no reason why a man who had powder and shot, and could not get an opportunity at any of the coverts during the day, should not put in pleasantly a few hours at night.

Naturally a rain of bullets, even though they might hit rarer than lightning strokes, had a wearing effect on the garrison.

While this noisy fusillade by the mob of truculent bushwhackers was going on, there were much more soldierly occurrences by the more soldierly men on both sides.

There were sorties and counter-sorties in which the greatest gallantry was displayed on both sides, and in which substantially all the losses occurred. The Secessionists captured a Union flag in one of these, which was balanced by a Secession flag captured by the 1st 111. Cav. Owing to the great superiority of the enemy in numbers, the finality of all these was against the garrison, which was everywhere pushed back from the edges of the bluff, and also from some buildings on the bluffs overlooking the works.

Gen. Rains's Division invested the eastern and northeastern position of Mulligan's works; Gen. Parsons the southwestern, with Clark's Division, commanded by Col. Congreve Jackson, and Steen's Division as reserves.

Col. Rives, commanding Gen. Slack's Division, occupied the west along the river bank and captured the steamboats by which Mulligan could escape or receive reinforcements; Gens. Harris and Mc-Bride extended this line along the north, cutting off the garrison from all access to the river and water. This became very effective in forcing surrender, as not only the men but the animals suffered terribly from thirst.

By the morning of Sept. 18, six days after the first encounter with the pickets, Gen. Price had all his forces up and properly disposed about the garrison. He and his principal subordinates were very weary of the noisy and fruitless bushwhacking, and eager for something more conclusive.

Orders were issued for the whole line to close in upon the Union works, and they were gallantly responded to and met as gallant resistance from the beleaguered garrison in the 52 hours of stubborn fighting which ensued. Col. Congreve Jackson, commanding Gen. John B. Clark's Third Division, reported that he succeeded in getting to within 460 yards of the College.

Col. Benj. A. Rives, commanding Gen. Slack's Fourth Division, says that after having been driven back by a gallant counter-assault, he got within 100 yards of the College.

Gen. Steen lays claim for his division of having defeated Lieut.-Col. Scott, after which he passed back into the reserve.

Gen. Mosby M. Parsons, commanding the Sixth Division, says that he reached to within 500 yards of the College, and also crossed the river with 3,000 men, to repel Sturgis, who "retired in confusion, leaving 200 of their tents."

Gen. J. H. McBride, commanding the Seventh Division, says that he succeeded in forming a breastwork with hemp bales "100 yards from the enemy's works."

Gen. Jas. S. Rains says that with the Second Division, numbering 3,025 rank and file, he succeeded in gaining a position 350 yards north and 500 yards east of the College.

Gen. Thos. A. Harris does not give the point he reached, but the concurrent testimony is that he was the closest of all, and is supported by the fact that his division sustained the heaviest loss. To his division is due the credit of the famous device of hemp bales as advancing breastworks.

Gen. Price quietly appropriates the credit for the device to himself, saying in his report:

On the morning of the 20th inst I caused a number of hemp bales to be transported to the river nights, where moveable breastworks were speedily constructed out of them by Cols. Harris, McBride, Rives and Maj. Winston, and their respective commands. Capt. Kelly's battery was ordered at the same time to the position occupied by Gen. Harris's force, and quickly opened an effective fire under the direction of its gallant Captain.

These demonstrations, particularly the continued advance of the hemp breastworks, which were as efficient as the cotton bales at New Orleans, quickly attracted attention and excited and alarmed the enemy. They were, however, repulsed in every instance by the unflinching courage and fixed determination of the men.

Gen. Harris says in his report to Gen. Price: "I then directed Capt. Geo. A. Turner, of my staff, to request of you 132 bales of hemp, which you promptly credited.

"I directed the bales to be wet in the river to protect them against the casualties of fire of our troops and the enemy's, and soon discovered that the wetting was so materially increasing the weight as to prevent our men in their exhausted condition from rolling them to the crest of the hill. I then adopted the idea of wetting the hemp after it had been transported to this position."

The credit has also been stoutly claimed for Col. Thomas Hinkle, of Wellington County, Mo., who two years later was killed in command of a guerrilla organization. No matter whose, the idea was singularly effective, and despite the most gallant efforts of the garrison, the hemp bales were steadily rolled nearer, until by 2 o'clock in the afternoon of the 20th they were in places as close as from 50 to 75 yards of the Union works. At this distance it would be easy to mass an overpowering force behind their cover to rush upon and instantly overwhelm the garrison.

The garrison, which had now been fighting for eight long days; which was so short of ammunition that most of the cartridge boxes were empty, and there was no supply from which to refill them; which was tortured with thirst, surrounded with hundreds of animals dying from lack of water, at last raised the white flag.

After eight days of waiting there was no more sign of rescue than there was on the first, and everywhere they could look their enemies swarmed in apparently limitless numbers. Gen. Price granted the garrison honorable terms. The officers were to remain as prisoners of war, the men to lay down their arms, take the oath not to fight any more against Missouri, and to be sent across the river and allowed to go whither they would.

With shrewd policy he allowed Col. Mulligan to retain his sword and showed him a great many civilities. Mulligan was a representative Irishman, and this would bear fruit in the attitude of the Irish toward the war. In his report to Gov. Jackson Gen. Price sums up the fruits of his victory as follows:

Our entire loss in this series of engagements amounts to 25 killed and 72 wounded. The enemy's loss was much greater.

The visible fruits of this almost bloodless victory are very great—about 3.500 prisoners, among whom are Cols. Mulligan, Marshall, Peabody, White, and Grover, Maj. Van Horn and 118 other commissioned officers, five pieces of artillery and two mortars, over 8,000 stands of Infantry arms, a large number of sabers, about 750 horses, many sets of cavalry equipments, wagons, teams and ammunition, more than 8100,-000 worth of commissary stores, and a large amount of other property. In addition to all this, I obtained the restoration of the great seal of the State and the public records, which had been stolen from their proper custodian, and about $900,-000 in money, of which the bank at this place had been robbed, and which I have caused to be returned to it.

Of Gen. Price's characteristics that of under-statement was certainly not one; but there is no use caviling about this, since the disaster was in all conscience bad enough for the Union side.

Col Mulligan's official report is not included in the Rebellion Records. It was quite a rhetorical statement of the affair, with unstinted praise for his own regiment and Irish valor generally, much condemnation for the Germans, between whom and the Irish there was at that time a great deal of feeling, and absolutely ignoring all the rest who participated in the defense. This was particularly unjust to the 1st ID. Cav. While the 23d 111. had taken the best and strongest part of the line, the 1st 111. Cav. had defended the weakest and most exposed part, that, too, with only pistols and sabers, and had captured the only flag taken during the siege.

The total loss of the garrison is usually given as 39 killed and 120 wounded.

Probably Gen. Price in his report only mentioned the losses in his organized forces. If his wounded did not exceed 72, his men showed unusual ability in keeping under cover.

While the loss did not approach that of the desperate fight at Wilson's Creek, yet it was respectably large according to European standards, the garrison having lost about six per cent before surrendering.

Gen. Fremont announced this calamity to Washington in the following telegrams:

The patient and much enduring President answered as follows:

Fremont began to topple to his fall.

The modest bars of a Captain on their shoulder straps had been, as it were, changed in the twinkling of an eye into the refulgent stars of a General, but they seemed to take this as a deserved tribute to their personal worth, rather than as an incentive and opportunity for the greater things which had made their predecessors illustrious.

Fremont, in the palatial Brandt Mansion, for which the Government was paying the very unusual rent of $6,000 per year, was maintaining a vice regal court as difficultly accessible as that of any crowned head of Europe. His uncounted and glittering staff, which seemed to have received the Pentecostal gift of tongues—in which English was not included—was headed by a mysterious "Adlatus,"—a title before unknown in America or to the dictionaries, and since retired to oblivion. Naturally, the Adlatus's command of English was limited. His knowledge of Missouri was even more so. Though commanding Missouri and dealing intensely with Missouri affairs, the men surrounding Fremont were everything but Missourians or those acquainted with Missouri affairs. It would have been surprising to find one of them who could bound the State and name its principal rivers.

This, too, in the midst of a multitude of able, educated, influential Missourians who were ardent Unionists and were burning with zeal to serve the cause. Not one of them appears in the Fremont entourage.

Gens. Pope, Sturgis, Jeff C. Davis, Hunter,—all Regulars and trained to war; Sigel, with his profound theoretical knowledge and his large experience; Curtis, lately returned to the Army with his military training supplemented by wide experience in civil life; Hurlbut, the brilliant orator and politician, were all busily engaged in something or other that kept them from interfering with Price while he lingered on the Missouri River gathering up recruits and stripping the Union farmers of that rich agricultural region of cattle and grain sufficient to feed his army during the coming Winter, and of horses and wagons to haul off his spoils and thoroly equip his army with transportation.

The only really soldierly thing done at this time was by the "political General,"—the erratic, demagogic, trumpet-sounding "Jim" Lane. He was commanding men who had come out from home to do something toward fighting the war and not to stay in camp and be drilled into automatons. He could only maintain his hold on them and his ascendency in Kansas politics by action.

Learning that Price had left a large stock of ammunition at the important little town of Osceola, the head of navigation on the Osage River, under strong guard, Lane led his brigade a swift march from Kansas upon the town, and succeeded in surprising the garrison, which, after a brief resistance, retreated and left it to Lane's mercy, whereupon he proceeded to not only destroy the very considerable quantity of stores which Price had accumulated there, but to burn down the town. This was an exceedingly ill-advised ending to a piece of brilliant soldiership, because not only was it injustice to an enemy, but it was a severe blow upon Union men who owned full one-third of the property destroyed.

A large number of these were engaged in the trade of the Southwest, for which Osceola was a distributing center. Goods were brought up the river during the high water and then shipped through the country by wagons. The town was also the County seat of St. Clair County, and contained the public records, etc.

Still more unfortunate was it that Lane's act was taken as an excuse for the Missouri guerrillas to retaliate upon Kansas towns and the property of the Union people in their own State. Lane says in his report: "The enemy ambushed the approaches to the town, and after being driven from them by the advance under Cols. Montgomery and Weer, they took refuge in the buildings of the town to annoy us. We were compelled to shell them out, and in doing so the place was burned to ashes, with an immense amount of stores of all descriptions. There were 15 or 20 of them killed and wounded; we lost none. Full particulars will be furnished you hereafter."

This shows that even he felt the necessity of apologizing for the act, but the apology is too transparent. The fact was that the Kansas men saw an opportunity to pay back some of their old scores against the Missourians and did not fail to improve it.

In spite of Gen. Fremont's promise to the President to "take the field himself and attempt to destroy the enemy," he moved with exceeding deliberation. It is true that he left St. Louis for Jefferson City, Sept. 27, a week after Mulligan's surrender, but that week had been well employed by Price in gathering up all that he could carry away and making ready to avoid the blow which he knew must fall.

After arriving at Jefferson City, Fremont, instead of taking the troops which were near at hand and making a swift rush upon his enemy, the only way in which he could hope to hurt him, began the organization of a "grande armée" upon the European model, and that which McClellan was deliberately organizing in front of Washington.

The impatient people, who were paying the $3,000,000 a day which the war was now beginning to cost, and who had begun to murmur for results, were amused by stories of plans of sweeping down the Mississippi clear to New Orleans, taking Memphis, Vicksburg and other strongholds on the way, severing the Southern Confederacy in twain, so that it would fall into hopeless ruin.

This was entirely possible at that time with the army that had been given Fremont, had it been handled with the ability and boldness of Sherman's March to the Sea.

Two weeks after Mulligan's surrender Fremont announced the formation of this grand "Army of the West," containing approximately 50,000 men. This was grouped as follows:

The First Division, to which Gen. David Hunter was assigned, consisted of 9,750 men, and was ordered to take position at Versailles, about 40 miles southwest of Jefferson City, and became the Left Wing of the Army.

Gen. John Pope was given command of the Second Division of 9,220 men and ordered to take station at Boonville, 50 miles northwest of Jefferson City. His position was to be the Right Wing of the army.

The Third Division, 7,980 strong, was put under command of Gen. Franz Sigel, and made the advance of the army, with its station at Sedalia and Georgetown, 64 miles west of Jefferson City.

The Fifth Division, commanded by Gen. Asboth, had 6,461 men, and constituted the reserve at Tipton, on the railroad, 38 miles west of Jefferson City.

The Fifth Division, 5,388 men, under Gen. Justus McKinstry, formed the center and was posted at Syracuse, five miles west of Tipton.

Beside these, Gen. Sturgis held Kansas City with 3,000 men and Gen. Jas. H. Lane, with 2,500 men, was to move in Kansas down the State line, between Fort Scott and Kansas City, to protect Kansas from an incursion in that direction, and as opportunity offered attack Price's flank.

Thus, there were 38,789 effectives in the five divisions, which with Sturgis's and Lane's forces made a total force of 44,289, not including garrisons which swell the total of the army to over 90,000.

Among these Division Commanders were two whom Fremont had discovered and created Brigadier-Generals out of his own volition, without consultation at Washington.

These were Gens. Asboth and McKinstry. Gen. Alexander (Sandor) Asboth, born in 1811, was a Hungarian and an educated engineer, with considerable experience in and against the Austrian army. He had entered ardently into the Revolution of 1848, and built a bridge in a single night by which the Revolutionary army crossed and won the brilliant victory of Nagy Salo. He became Adjutant-General of the Hungarian army, and when the Revolution was crushed by Russian troops, escaped with Kossuth into Turkey, came to this country, and became a naturalized citizen. He was by turns farmer, teacher, engineer, and manufacturer of galvanized articles. He sided with the Union Germans, went on Fremont's staff, and was appointed a Brigadier-General. The Senate refused to recognize the appointment, but in consideration of his good service he was reappointed, served creditably through the war, was brevetted a Major-General, and after the war sent as Minister to the Argentine Confederation, where he died in 1868.

The other, Justus McKinstry, was born in New York and appointed to the Military Academy from Michigan, where he graduated 40th in the class of 1838, of which Beauregard, Barry, Irvin McDowell, W. J. Hardee, R. S. Granger, Henry H. Sibley, Edward Johnson and A. J. Smith were members. He had served creditably in the Mexican War, receiving a brevet for gallantry at Contreras and Churubusco, and at the outbreak of the war was a Major and Quartermaster at St. Louis, where he did very much to frustrate Lyon's plans and was regarded by him as a Secessionist at heart. He continued to hold his position, however, as Chief Quartermaster of the Department of the West until Fremont appointed him Brigadier-General.

Shortly after Fremont's removal he was placed under arrest at St. Louis and ordered before a court-martial, which did not convene, and he was at last summarily dismissed for "neglect and violation of duty, to the prejudice of good order and military discipline." He became a stock broker in New York City, and afterwards a land agent at Rolla, Mo.

It will be seen by the map that the disposition of the troops was good, and that Fremont had the advantage of short lines from Sedalia and Rolla to cut Price's line of retreat, recapture the spoils he was hastening to a place of safely, and destroy, or at least disperse, his army.

Fremont, however, made no use of this advantage, and Price seems to have had no apprehension that he would. Price remained in Lexington until Oct 1, serenely contemplating the gigantic preparations made for his destruction, and then having gathered up all that he could readily get, and reading Fremont's order for a forward movement of the Army of the West, thought, like the prudent meadow lark, that probably something would be now done, and the time had come for moving. He began a deliberate retreat, crossing the Osage River at Osceola, and reaching Greenfield, 150 miles away, at the very comfortable pace of 15 miles a day.

Gen. Fremont ordered the Army of the West forward, but the so-called pursuit was very much like hunting a fox on a dray. He was encumbered with immense trains, for which bridges had to be built over numerous streams and roads made thru the rough country. The trains seemed to contain a world of unnecessary things and an astonishing lack of those necessary. Apparently almost anybody who had anything to sell could find purchasers among the numerous men about Fremont's headquarters who had authority to buy, or assumed it.

One astonishing item in the purchases was a great number of half barrels for holding water, rather an extraordinary provision in a country like Missouri, where in the month of October water is disposed to be in excessive quantities.

Notwithstanding the astonishing purchase of mules by everybody and anybody, none of the Division Commanders seem to have had mules enough to pull their wagons.

The division started out like the horses of a balky team. Gen. Pope, of the Right Wing, left Jefferson City Oct. 11, Sigel got away from Sedalia with the Third Division Oct. 13, the same day Hunter left Tipton with the Left Wing, and Asboth followed on Oct 14. Even when they started their progress was very slow, for the columns were halted at streams to build bridges and in the rough countries to wait for the sappers and miners to make passable roads.

When one column was halted, all the rest had to do likewise, for though Price kept the safe distance of 100 miles away, Fremont was in constant apprehension of battle, and held his columns in close supporting distance. He did not get across the Osage River until Oct. 25, or nine days after Price's leisurely crossing that important stream, on the banks of which it was confidently expected that he would give battle.

Price, with his diminishing forces, had no such intention, but fell back toward Neosho, to cover as long as possible the Granby Mines, seven miles from that place, which were the most important source of lead for the Southern Confederacy, to which they supplied 200,000 pounds per month.

Gov. Jackson took advantage of this breathing spell to call the Legislature together at Neosho, where it held a two weeks' "rump" session of the small minority of that body which favored Secession. They passed an ordinance of Secession and elected Senators and Representatives to the Confederate Congress, adjourning when they heard that Fremont had at last passed the Osage.

Then Price took up his line of retreat toward the southern boundary of the State to get near Gen. Ben McCulloch, who had posted his forces at Cross Hollow, in Benton County, northwest Arkansas. Gen. Price took up his position at Pineville, in the extreme southwestern corner of Missouri, where the rough, hilly country offered great chances to the defense, and again began communication with Gen. McCulloch to induce him to unite his force with his own and attack the Union army.

He had correctly estimated Fremont's generalship, and thought there was a possibility of massing his and McCulloch's forces, to attack a portion of Fremont's army, drive it back and defeat him in detail. McCulloch, in spite of his ranger reputation, entirely lacked Price's aggressive spirit, and thought that it would be much better to fall back to the Boston Mountain, about 50 miles farther south, and make a stand there. He so informed Gen. Price.

While McCulloch had no disposition to enter Missouri and defend it against the Union troops, he had no hesitation about treating it as part of Confederate territory. Desiring to embarrass and delay Fremont's advance as much as possible, he sent forward his Texas cavalry to burn the mills, forage and grain as far in the direction of Springfield as they could safely go, and urged Price to do the same. McCulloch's Texans soon lighted up the southwest country with burning mills, barns and stacks.

To this Gen. Price was bitterly opposed. The mills and grain were in many instances the property of the Secessionists, and to destroy them would be to inflict worse punishment on his own people than the Union commanders had ever done, and would embitter them against his cause.

Price repeatedly represented to McCulloch that altogether they would have 25,000 men, and if McCulloch did not desire to go forward they could make a good defensive battle inside the State on the hills around Pineville. To leave it would cause the loss of very many Missourians who had enlisted in the State Guard to defend Missouri, and who would feel that they had no cause to fight outside of the State.

After crossing the Osage Fremont halted near Connersville, about 25 miles south of Warsaw, where he crossed the river, and then advanced with Sigel to Bolivar, on the Springfield road, and sent forward Maj. Charles Zagonyi with 150 of his famous Body Guard and Maj. F. J. White with 180 men of the 1st Mo. Cav., to make a reconnoissance in the direction of Springfield.

Fremont's Body Guard had played a large part in the pomp and circumstance of his administration. Maj. Chas. Zagonyi was a picturesque and effervescent Hungarian, who recounted fascinating stories of his experience as a subordinate to Gen. Bern during the Hungarian Revolution. Fremont had authorized him to raise a body guard, in imitation of the famous troops of Europe, and the novelty of the organization attracted to it a great number of quite fine young men, most of whom were from the country around Cincinnati—one company being from Kentucky. They were formed into three companies, mounted on fine blooded bay horses, showily uniformed and each armed with two navy revolvers, a five-barreled rifle and a saber.

All the officers were Americans except three—one Hollander and two Hungarians. The members of the Guard, in addition to their expensive and showy outfit, did not conceal from the other soldiers that they were picked men and considered themselves superior to the ordinary run, which did not enhance their popularity with their comrades.

Majs. Zagonyi and White marched all that night, and the next day, about noon, when about eight miles north of Springfield, learned that there was a force of at least 1,500 Confederates in the town.

One of the rebel pickets who had not been captured hastened back to Springfield and gave the alarm, so that the Confederates were in readiness for them. Feeling that this would be so, Majs. Zagonyi and White determined to move around the town and approach it from the west on the Mt. Vernon road. In this movement White became separated from Zagonyi, who, about 4 o'clock in the afternoon, came most unexpectedly upon the Secessionists drawn up in line at the end of a long lane.

A heavy rail fence intervened between Zagonyi and the head of the lane, and an opening had to be made through this under a heavy fire from the enemy. The moment a gap was made, Zagonyi shouted to his men to follow him, and do as he did, raising the battle cry, "Fremont and the Union." He dashed gallantly forward, straight for the center of the rebel line, followed at a gallop by his command. The Confederate fire did fearful execution upon the Guard as it was crowded in the lane, but in a few seconds the lane was passed and the cavalry saber began doing its wild work.

The center of the enemy's lines was at once broken by the terrible impact of galloping horses and the Confederates began a panicky retreat, followed by the vengeful horsemen shooting and sabering them as they ran. The infantry ran through the town to the shelter of the woods, and the Confederate cavalry fell back down the road, pursued by the Guard until it was getting nightfall, when Zagonyi recalled them and returned to the Court House, raised the Union flag from it, released the Union prisoners confined in the jail, gathered up his dead and wounded, and after dark decided to fall back until he met the advance of the army.

He had lost 15 men killed and 26 wounded, and reported that he had found 23 Confederates dead after the charge was over. This brilliant action, which was then compared with the Charge of the Light Brigade at Balaklava, redeemed the soldiers of the Guards in the eyes of their comrades, and it became an honor to belong to that organization.

The next morning Maj. White reached Springfield with a few Home Guards, where he found the Confederates still dazed by the occurrences of the day before, and he was careful not to undeceive them as to his strength. He solemnly received the flag of truce, said that he would have to refer the matter to Gen. Sigel, threw out his men as pickets, permitted the people to bury their dead, and then prudently fell back to meet the advance of the army.

Fremont took up his quarters in Springfield, and began ostentatious preparations for an immediate decisive battle, though Price was then more than 50 miles away from him. This Fremont should have known, for in some mysterious manner he was within ready communication with him, so much so as to be able to conclude the following remarkable convention which was duly published in a joint proclamation: