OHIO STATEWIDE FILES - HISTORY: Chapter 45 Part A (Abbott, John S. C., 1875)
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			Chapter XLV.

	 The Toledo War and the War of the Rebellion.


   A difficulty arose between the inhabitants of the State of Ohio and those
of the then Territory of Michigan which calls for brief notice. The Ordinance
of the United States Congress of 1789 providing for a government for the
Northwest Territory, defined the northern boundaries of the present States
of Ohio, Indiana and Illinois, by the line dividing the United States from
the British Possessions. There was also a proviso included that Congress might
hereafter form one or two states in the territory north of a line drawn east
and west from the extreme southerly bend of Lake Michigan.
   When in 1802 the people of Ohio were authorized to form a state constitution
the northern boundary was defined by Congress, as formed "by an east and west
line drawn through the southerly extremity of Lake Michigan, running east, 
after intersecting the due north line from the mouth of the Great Miami
(the Maumee), until it shall intersect Lake Erie or the territorial line, 
and thence with the same through Lake Erie to the Pennsylvania line."
   The Maumee River was then called the Great Miami or Miami of the Lake. In
1808 the Territory of Michigan was organized. The boundaries were defined as
including "the territory which lies north of a line drawn east from the 
southerly bend of Lake Michigan, until it shall intersect Lake Erie, and easst
of a line drawn from the said southerly bend through the middle of said
lake to its northern extremity, and thence due north to the northern boundary
of the United States."
   It was subsquently found that such a line was impossible. A line running
due east from the southern extremity of Lake Michigan, instead of striking
Lake Erie, would pass nearly eight miles south of its shores, dividing the
Counties of Cuyahoga, Geauga and Ashtabula. Thus there was disputed territory
running the whole length of the north line of the State of Ohio. It was about
eight miles in width in the east, and five miles in the west. This land
included much of the Connecticut Reserve. It was very valuable farming land.
It commanded much of the commerce of the vast lakes. But what rendered it
particularly important was, that it contained the excellent harbor on the
Maumee where the beautiful City of Toledo now stands. The place was then 
called Swan Creek.
   As the country of Ohio became rapidly settled, and internal improvements
of great magnitude were contemplated, and especially a canal to traverse the
whole breadth of the State, from Cincinnati to the navigable waters of the
Maumee, the inhabitants of Ohio deemed the possession of this territory of
vital importance. There can be no question that Congress intended that the 
northern boundary of Ohio should extend to the shores of the lake. There can
be little question that the boundary which Congress, with its then limited
geographical knowledge, distinctly defined, did not extend to those shores, 
or rather was an impossible one.
   The Territory of Michigan was also rapidly filling up with an intelligent,
vigorous and enterprising population. That magnificent peninsula extended far
away into the icy north, up to the forty-fifth degree of latitude. Her
far-seeing statesmen were alive to the importance of a commercial center in
her most southern and sunny region.
   The few inhabitants in the then wilderness of Swan Creek were very anxious
that their little town should be made the termination of the Maumee Canal.
They therefore petitioned Governor Lucas to extend the laws of Ohio over
them. The authorities of Michigan had previously exercised jurisdiction there.
In accordance with the suggestion of the governor, the Legislature of Ohio,
on the twenty-third of February, 1835, passed a law extending the dominion
of the state over that region.
   But only a few days before this the Territorial Legislatue of Michigan, 
alarmed by the threatening aspect of affairs, had passed, on the twelfth of
February, "An act to prevent the organization of a foreign jurisdiction
within the limits of the Territory of Michigan." By this act any person who
should exercise any official functions within the limits of the Territory of
Michigan, unless commissioned by the Government of the United States or of
the Territory of Michigan, was liable to a penalty of a fine of one thousand
dollars and five years' imprisonment at hard labor.
   The inhabitants of the disputed territory were somewhat divided in opinion,
and all were greatly perplexed in deciding what laws they should obey. On
the thirty-first of March, Governor Lucas, accompanied by his staff and 
boundary commissioners, arrived at Perrysburg, supported by a military force
of six hundred men fully armed and equipped. This strong body took up its
encampment at old Fort Miami. Governor Mason of Michigan hastened to Fort
Swan, but a few miles below Perrysburg, with a force of about a thousand men.
A bloody conflict seemed inevitable. Governor Mason, being in possession, in 
this trial was defendent. Governor Lucas was the plaintiff.
   Just at the critical moment two commissioners arrived from Washington to
endeavor to arrest hostilities. They with difficulty succeeded in persuading
the antagonistic parties to allow the inhabitants of the disputed territory
to obey either jurisdiction they might please until the next Congress could 
meet and settle the question. Andrew Jackson, who was then President of the
United States, wrote to Benjamin F. Butler, of New York, the attorney-general, 
for his official opinion in regard to the President's power over the two 
parties. He replied that the President had no power to annul a law of the
territorial legislature, and that the act of the Legislature of Ohio in
extending jurisdiction over a part of the Territory of Michigan was a serious
violation of the laws of the United States, authorizing executive interposition.
His decision was decidedly in favor of Michigan.
   The antagonistic parties still continued facing each other, and many
scenes, both tragic and comic, ensued. At the next session of Congress the 
question was taken up, and after being thoroughly discussed was decided in
favor of Ohio. Michigan in the meantime had applied for admission as a state.
She was told that her request could be granted only upon condition of her
recognizing the boundary established by Congress. She received, however, as
an equivalent for the narrow strip she had claimed along her southern boundary,
the large peninsula between Lakes Huron, Michigan and Superior, now found to
be so rich in mineral ores. Thus this important question was settled without
resulting to the folly of killing and burning.
   And now let us turn to the wonderful efficiency of Ohio in the terrible
war of the rebellion. As has been seen, at the commencement of this century
the region now organized as Ohio was a vast wilderness of gigantic forests
and pathless morasses, over and through which the painted savage pursued his
game. Scarcely the solitary hut of a white man could be found through all the
wide extended realm. Nearly the whole surface was covered with the gloom of
an almost impenetrable forest. Look at Ohio after the lapse of three-score
years. In the year 1860 Ohio contained nearly a million and a half inhabitants.
And it is safe to say that a more intelligent, enterprising and religious
population could nowhere be found. Her stately cities, her beautiful rural
villages, her palatial mansions and her cottage homes, commanded the admiration
of all tourists. The state had already become the third in wealth and rank in 
the Union. More than half of its luxuriant surface was under culitivation.
   One-half of the male inhabitants of the state were agriculturists, busy, 
energetic men, under whose sinewy arms the desert was blossoming like a rose.
Two hundred and seventy-seven thousand owned farms averaging nearly one
hundred acres each. The cultivation was so thorough, and the fertility of the
soil so abundant that the state produced annually four times the amount of
food, animal and vegetable, which was required for the support of its
inhabitants. In the year 1860 Ohio, besides feeding abundantly her own million
and a half of hungry mouths, exported about two million barrels of flour, 
two and a half million bushels of wheat, three million bushels of other grains,
and five hundred thousand barrels of pork. The value of these exports thus
earned by the agricultural labors of the people amounted to fifty-six and a 
half million dollars.
   The manufacturers were not less busy, or less profitably employed. The 
products of their skilled labor reached the sum of one hundred and twenty-two
million dollars. In Cincinnati, where but three-score years before wolves
were howling through an almost unbroken forest, or a half naked Indian appeared, 
treading the narrow trail to exchange the skin of a deer or the fur of a 
beaver for a quart of whiskey or a pound of powder, one of the most beautiful
cities on the globe had arisen, containing a population of two hundred thousand
souls. In that city alone, in that one year, clothing was manufactured to the
amount of sixteen million dollars.
   The assessed value of the taxable property of the inhabitants was a thousand
million dollars. Eminently wise legislation had provided free schools for all
the children, that they might be trained to the intelligent exercise of
American citizenship. To feed the cravings of the reading multitude for
information, twenty-four newspapers were published in the state, many of them
having wide circulation. There were sixty-five weekly journals, and fifty-four
monthly. The aggregate circulation of these was thirty-two million copies. The
amount of information thus sent to all the varied dwellings of the realm 
cannot be computed. The church edifices contained sittings enough for the 
entire population of the state.
   It is with reluctance that I speak of that cruel, fratricidal war of the
late rebellion, when American was arrayed against American, and brother against
brother, on fields of blood. The woes that war engendered no tongue can tell,
no imagination can conceive. Thousands of impoverished families of widows and
orphans will be in penury until they die. Thousands of homes are desolated, 
where true joy can never come again. And yet had rebellion triumphed, had our
national banner been trailed in the dust, had this glorious Union been 
dismembered by the foul assault which was waged against it, the hopes of
humanity for free government, would have sunk into dismal night. Terrible as
is the price which has been paid for the integrity of our Union, the result
attained is worth it all. Many years must elapst ere another attempt will be
made to overthrow this government, which surely, when contemplated in all
its aspects, is the best on the globe.
   Upon the overthrow of the throne of Charles X., when Paris and France were
menaced with anarchy, that most terrible of all calamities, La Fayette 
presented Louis Philippe to the vast throngs of the metropolis from the balcony
of the Hotel de Ville. As the illustrious champion of universal freedom held
the hand of the new candidate for the throne, he said to him:
   "You know that I am a republican, and that I regard the Constitution of 
the United States as the most perfect which has ever existed."
   "I think as you do," replied Louis Philippe. "It is impossible to pass two
years in the United States, as I have done, and not to be of that opinion.
But do you think that, in the present state of France, a republican government
can be maintained here?"
   "No," said La Fayette; "that which is necessary for France now is a throne
surrounded by republican institutions; all must be republican."
   "That is precisely my opinion," rejoined the monarch, who was just putting
on his crown.
   When we consider the speakers and the occasion, we must regard this as the 
highest compliment ever paid to the Constitution of the United States. Our
country would be lost to all sense of gratitude should it ever cease to regard
with the very highest sentiments of affection and honor those heroic soldiers
of our land who rescued from dire rebellion, at the peril and expense of their
blood, that glorious flag in whose folds the interests of all humanity are
enshrined.
   The almost infant State of Ohio sent into the field for the defense of the
national life three hundred and ten thousand men. The three most illustrious
Generals of the war, William T. Sherman, Ulysses S. Grant and Philip H.
Sheridan, were natives of Ohio, and received their first appointments from 
that state. O. S. Mitchel, alike renowned as an astronomer, a patriotic orator
and a soldier, was a citizen of Cincinnati. Rosecrans, McDowell and Gilmore, 
each of whom rendered very efficient service in the great conflict, were sons
of Ohio.
   E. M. Stanton, whose wonderful executive capacity as head of the War
Department, has given him renown throughout all the world, and S. P. Chase, 
whose wonderful administration of the finances, as Secretary of the Treasury, 
carried the government safely through expenditures such as no government ever
encountered before, were both from Ohio. "It was not your generals," said a
leading rebel, "who defeated us; it was your Treasury."
   In the gloomiest hours of the dreadful strife, when thousands of the bravest
hearts were sinking in despair, Benjamin F. Wade, of Ohio, as Chairman of the
Committee on the Conduct of the War, revivified again and again the drooping
energies of the nation by his glowing words of cheer. And Thomas C. Scheneck, 
Major General of Volunteers, maimed by the wounds which he had received on
the field of battle, passed to the House of Representatives, and as Chairman
there of the Military Committee, served his country still more efficiently 
than he could have done with his sword.
   The militia of Ohio rescued Western Virginia from the rebels. The militia
of Ohio utterly destroyed the most formidable cavalry raid which the rebels
undertook during the war. And when the fate of the nation seemed suspended
on the results of a single campaign, Ohio, at scarcely more than a day's notice, 
sent forty regiments into the field. The fathers and mothers of Ohio, with 
intense emotion, sent their sons forward to the conflict. They saw them often,
through the incompetency of their officers, languishing in inaction, or led 
to needless slaughter. Still they continued without a murmur to present their
precious gifts to the nation. Almost every home mourned a loved one lost.
Thousands of the noblest young men of Ohio were buried on distant battle-fields.
Weeping and lamentation could everywhere be heard. But religious zeal inspired
them. The war was a holy war. Upon its issues depended the question whether
this broad continent should be devoted to religion, education, and freedom, 
or whether it should be dismembered and broken into antagonistic fragments, 
where anarchy and ignorance should hold high carnival.
   One of the most memorable events of the war was the entire destruction of
Morgan's band of raiders within the limits of Ohio. John Morgan, a Kentuckian, 
who had obtained much renown for his reckless daring, was abundantly endowed
with both the virtues and vices of men in his class,-free livers, gamblers, 
with no God but one to swear by, and no religion. The rebel government 
entrusted him with an army of twenty-five hundred men and four pieces of
artillery, for a secret and rapid raid, burning and plundering through
northern Kentucky, Indiana, and Ohio.
   These well-mounted and thoroughly-armed dragoons left Sparta, Tennessee, 
on the 27th of June, 1863. Some of the horses to were thin in flesh, but
they said that they should soon get fresh steeds in the fat pastures of 
Indiana and Ohio. The command was divided into two brigades. One was led of
General Morgan, and the other by Colonel Johnston. With flying banners the
rebel host marched directly north, and entering Kentucky, crossed the Cumberland
River near Burkesville.
   But a rumor of the contemplated raid had reached the governmental authorities.
On the same day, June 27, the second and seventh Ohio cavalry, and the 
forty-fifth mounted infantry, with a howitzer-battery, under command of 
Colonel Woolford, left Somerset, Kentucky, to watch the movement of the raiders,
and head them off if possible. A clear, bracing air, which it was a luxury to
breathe, invigorated the patriot troops. A cloudless sky over-arched them and 
a gentle breeze caressed the glorious banner which was borne aloft at the 
head of the column.
   Their route, through a beautiful but sparsely settled country led them to
Jamestown, near the Cumberland, about thirty miles in a northerly direction
from Burkesville, where the raiders crossed the river. And here let me state
the great difficulty and often the impossibility of obtaining perfectly accurate
accounts of the minute details of such an expedition. The official reports
often vary materially. In an account of this raid some years ago, for Harpers's
Magazine, under the title of "Heroic Deeds of Heroic Men," I received many 
letters from officers engaged in the work of arresting them. There was often
a very marked contradiction in the representations which these letters gave.
All agreed in the accuracy with which the general movement was described, but
in the unimportant particulars there was diversity. I here give an account
of the raid, availing myself of all the criticism which that article called
forth.
   At Jamestown the patriot troops halted for further orders. On the 2d of
July General Carter, then in command of the Union forces at Somerset, was
startled by the sound of clattering hoofs in front of his tent. To hasten to
the door was the work of an instant. There stood a horse panting and reeking
with foam. His rider was a woman. Her habit was torn and bespattered with
mud, her veil gone, and her hair, disheveled by the wind, floated to her
waist.
   "Can I see General Carter?" she exclaimed. "I am in haste; every moment 
is precious."
   "I am General Carter," he replied. "What can I do for you?"
   "Listen," she said; "John Morgan, with two brigades, has crossed the
Cumberland near Burkesville and is now marching on Columia."
   "How do you know?"
   "Oh believe me," she earnest exclaimed. "My home is in East Tennessee. A
Union scout came to our house early yesterday morning and told me. My husband
is in the army. I have no boys. So I took my horse and come to tell you 
myself."
   The news brought by this noble woman led to an armed reconnoissance, which
was sent out under Captain Carter, in the direction of Columbia. With only a
small force he advanced toward the enemy. He, however, soon met a much 
larger force, by which he was quite overwhelmed. Captain Carter fell, mortally
wounded. Reinforcements came to the succor of the overpowered patriots, 
and, though they struggled with great bravery, they were so entirely outnumbered
that retreat became inevitable. Whole volleys of musketry responded to their
few rifle shots, and a park of artillery opened its murderous fire upon their
thin ranks. Still, without serious loss, they retreated with rapid march to
join their patriot friends who were stationed at Jamestown. Courier after
courier was dispatched to General Carter imploring help. The report of the 
lady being thus confirmed, the pursuit of John Morgan and his band of 
desperadoes was now commenced with great vigor.
   The rebel general had the advantage of the patriot forces by two days' 
march. Morgan infused his own tireless energies into his men. Not allowing
his troops to lose an hour, even for plunder, he pushed rapidly forward 
toward Green River, one of the important tributaries of the Ohio, which flows
through the heart of the State of Kentucky. The rebel raiders, in their
sweep through the state, were largely augmented by reckless adventurers, who,
without any moral or political principles, were eager to join in any expedition
which promised wild adventure and pluder. The cool, wary, crafty rebel 
chieftain, Basil Duke, aided the impetuous Morgan in the reckless enterprise.
It was said that Duke furnished the thinking brain, and Morgan the impetuous
hand, which guided and nerved this lawless band, as it swept a tornado path
of destruction through three states.
   Colonel Orlando H. Moore was in command of two hundred patriot troops
stationed at Tebb's Bend, on Green River. This was the only force to retard
the advance of the rebels upon New Market. On the 2d of July scouts brought
in the report that Morgan's band was advancing in full force upon the Bend.
Undaunted by the vast superiority of the rebels in numbers, Colonel Moore, 
as soon as he received the news, mounted his horse and rode over the surrounding
country to select his own battle field. About two miles from his encampment
he found a spot which suited him. The site was chosen for the morrow's battle
was truly beautiful. It was a lawn of level ground, carpeted with velvety 
turf and thick with trees, which, without the slightest impediment of underbrush,
were waving in all the luxuriance of June foliage - a spot which the silvery
river

		"Forsakes his course to fold as with an arm."

   All night long the men relieved each other in the arduous work with spade
and pick in throwing up entrenchments. Rifle-pits were dug. A barricade of
felled trees was made to check cavalry charges. Breastworks were thrown up, 
to stand between the bosoms of the patriots and the bullets of the rebel foe.
On the night of the 3d the gallant two hundred took possession of these
hurredly-constructed works, to beat back a small army of more than as many 
thousands.

			"Theirs not to reason why,
			 Theirs not to make reply
			 Theirs but to do and die."

   With not one word of murmuring, and with not one straggler, these heroic
men planted themselves behind their frail redoubts to wait the oncoming
surge of battle. All were prepared to meet, and with God's aid were determined
to repel, the charge from the foe, however numerous that foe might prove to
be. There was but little sleep in that patriot encampment that night. The
men, grasping their arms, lay down in the trenches, and thought of home, wife, 
children and friends. Memory was busy with the days which had fled, while stern
yet anxious thought dwelt upon the future of to-morrow. The next day was the
fourth of July. That thought alone helped to make them heroes. Who could tell
how many then and there would be called to put on the martyr's crown?
   With the first rays of the morning sun came the first balls from the rifles
of Morgan's sharp-shooters. Soon a shell came, with its hideous shriek, plump
into the little redoubt, wounding two men. With this hint of what they might
expect if obstinate, Morgan sent a flag of truce with Major Elliot, demanding
an immediate surrender of the entire force under Moore's command. Colonel
Moore replied : "Present my compliments to General Morgan, and say to him
that this being the Fourth of July, I can not entertain the proposition." Then 
turning to his men, he said: "Now rise up, take good aim, and pick off those
gunners."
   At those words the patriots opened a calm, deliberate, and deadly fire. 
The numerous trees and the intrenchments they had thrown up afforded them
very efficiently protection. Gradually the little redoubt became nearly 
encircled by the rebels. Still no one thought of yielding. Colonel Moore was
everywhere, encouraging and inspiring his men with his own enthusiastic
patriotism. The heroic band still loaded and fire with fatal precision, though

			"Cannon to the right of them,
			 Cannon to the left of them,
			 Cannon in front of them
			 Volleyed and thundered."

   No hand trembled. No heart faltered. For God and the flag they fought and
bled. The battle raged with unabated fury on both sides for four hours. At
last the enemy retreated, leaving his dead on the field. The rebel army, 
thus checked and discomfitted, relinquished the prey they had hoped to grasp, 
and by a circuit avoiding New Market, continued their plundering raid.
   The conquerors, exultant over their achievement, with new zest celebrated
the Fourth of July. They were entitled to unusual joy, for they had contributed
another triumph to the memorable day.
   Meanwhile the patriot pursuers pressed on. At Bradfordville they received
the first reliable news of the raiders. Morgan had been so delayed by the
unexpected resistance he encountered at Tebb's Bend, that he reached Lebanon
only thirty hours in advance of the avenging patriots on his track. At 
Lebanon there chanced to be a small band of United States troops. Around these
the militia of the region were speedily rallied. They presented a brave but
unavailing resistance to the raiders, who great outnumbered them.
   As the patriots retreated before the foe, three hundred of them were taken
prisoners. The rebels goaded these unhappy captives at the point of their
sabers to run at the double-quick to Springfield, a distance of twelve miles.
If any lagged through exhaustion, he was forced on by saber-thrusts and menaces
of death. One unfortunate young man found it impossible to keep up with his
merciless captors. The wretches knocked him on the head as a warning to the
rest, and left him in the middle of the road to be trampled into a shapeless
mass by the hoofs of the thousands of horses which composed their column.
   When they arrived at Springfield the prisoners were paroled, after having
been first robbed of every dollar. Their hats and coats were also taken from
them and transferred to the persons of the ragged rebels. On the 6th of July
the patriot troops reached Bardstown only twenty-four hours after Morgan had
left that place. Here General Hobson joined the national troops, which were
under Colonel Woolford. He brought with him four brigades of Kentucky cavalry
and two pieces of artillery. General Hobson, by virtue of his superior rank,
now took command. The patriot troops, greatly exhausted by the impetuous 
pursuit, encamped for the night near Sheperdsville. The horses were about used
up. They had been under the saddle for several days and nights, with scarcely
an hour for rest.
   A night of repose was very refreshing to the wearied men and horses. But
at the first bugle call in the morning every man sprang to his saddle, and
again they pressed eagerly forward in the pursuit. Scouts reported Morgan on
his way to Brandenburg, where he intended to cross the Ohio River into 
Indiana. His plan, as declared by spies, was to pass through the rich southern
counties of Indiana and Ohio, ravaging as he swiftly rode, and thus circling
round into Virginia, where he hoped to join Lee, and with him to make a raid
upon Washington.
   The patriot prisoners, both officers and men, resolved to indulge in no
rest until this scheme was rendered abortive by the capture of the rebel
chief. The marauding band reached the Ohio River successfully and exultantly.
They seized upon two steamers, with which they crossed the stream. The torch
was then applied to the steamers, and they were burned to the water's edge.
Just as the Union army reached the river they saw the last of Morgan's
cavalry galloping out of sight. The whole of the 9th of July was occupied
in crossing the river. At night the troops went into camp to get strength
for the long and arduous toil still before them.
   After entering Indiana the rebels soon gave marked indications of the policy
they intended to pursue in their invasion of the Free States. Wherever they
appeared horses were impressed; shops entered and robbed; laces and ribbons
were stored away in capacious pockets for lady-loves at home; mills were
burned, unless instantly ransomed by the payment of a thousand dollars. And
any man who ventured to offer resistance or remonstrance was sternly shot
down upon the spot. The demons of theft, murder, arson, brooded over the
guerilla band, and urged them to every conceivable excess.
   At the little town of Vernon, Indiana, the rebels found their path 
effectually blockaded. Colonel J. H. Burkham resolved to make a stand there
and give fight to the foe. The force in the town consisted of only about one
hundred citizens. The Home Guard had been sent away some days before in 
pursuit of Morgan when he was at Salem. About three hundred patriot troops, 
under Colonel J. H. Burkham, were guarding the two very long and high bridges
just outside of the town.
   Brigadier General Love was at Seymour, about sixteen miles west of Vernon, 
with about two thousand militia. Immediately upon hearing of Morgan's whereabouts, 
he hastened to Vernon. Being the superior officer he assumed command.
   In the meantime, while these hurried movements were taking place, Morgan
arrived with his raiders, and sent in a flag of truce, demanding the surrender
of the town. "Come and take it," was the intrepid reply. The women and children
were removed to a place of safety. Every effort was made to defend the place
to the last extremity. A company of sharp-shooters had already come in from
North Vernon, about two miles distant. At daylight, General Lew Wallace was 
reported as near as hand, with about three thousand five hundred men; as the
senior officer, the command passed to him.
   Morgan now concluded that the better part of valor was discretion. Deciding
not to risk an encounter, his men turned aside from the town, and putting
spurs to their horses rode rapidly on. The militia of course could not pursue
them. But the mounted Union troops, scarcely a score of miles in their rear, 
pressed forward with the utmost eagerness in the exciting race. On, on Morgan's
men rode, throught the lower counties of Indiana, wantonly plundering articles
which only encumbered them, and strewing their path with the wreck of articles
thrown away.
   The rebels had greatly the advantage over their pursuers. In every town
they passed through they seize all the fresh horses, leaving their jaded
steeds behind or shooting them. Many of the bridges they burned, so that the
patriots had either to ford or swim the streams or build new bridges.
   On the night of the 13th of July General Hobson ordered his troops into 
brief encampment at Harrison, on the boundary line between Indiana and Ohio.
His horses and men alike worn down. For four days and nights they had toiled
along with scarcely an hour allowed for repose. That night all slept soundly.
The rebels were encamped scarcely fifteen miles in advance of them, near the
suburbs of Cincinnati. Incredible as the statement may appear, it is positively
asserted that Morgan, in disguise, entered the city, and in company with a 
traitor friend there, attended a ball given by one of the ladies of the place.
   The rebels rested but a few hours in the vicinity of the Queen City of the
West. They were not strong enough to venture into its streets. Onward they
rushed, plundering stores and dwellings, burning bridges, and destroying
railroads. Thus they left their desolating track through the rich counties
of Southern Ohio.
   When near the little settlement of Jaspar Mills, in Fayette County, the
citizens collected, and cutting down trees built a barricade in the road. 
Morgan came up and contemptuously opened fire upon the little band, expecting
to scatter them as dogs disperse the flock. But these determined men fought 
bravely, and for four hours held the raiders at bay. In the meantime the 
pursuers were rapidly gaining upon them.
   It is difficult for any one sitting by his own quiet fireside to form any 
conception of the anxiety and terror which pervaded the rural homes of Ohio, 
as clattering horsemen dashed through the streets, exclaiming, "Morgan's
raiders are at hand, and you are directly in their path." Physicians, lawyers,
clergymen, all joined in repelling the invaders wherever there was any 
reasonable chance of making any effectual resistance. At this point the rebels
were compelled, after the loss of several hours, to abandon their contemplated
route through the town, and by a circuitous road to press on their way.
   Crossing the Scioto River the rebels reached Jackson, in Jackson County.
When near that place the farmers threw up a barracade, and again, by this
timely check, the raiders lost two hours. The flight and the chase now became
intensely exciting. The country in this region is quite level, intersected
by many small streams, but all fordable at this season of the year. These
rivulets added much to the beauty of the landscape, while they presented but
little obstruction to the march. The weather throughout the whole pursuit
had been delightful. A cloudless sky, an invigorating breeze, with plenty of
food for man and forage for horses, animated the spirits of both parties.
   The patriots had now drawn so near their flying foes that they could almost
hear the clatter of their horses' hoofs. It was evidently the plan of Morgan
to advance directly through Chester, on Shade River, to the Ohio. Not far
from Chester, on the banks of the Ohio River, was the island of Buffington.
At this point the river was fordable, and here Morgan intended to cross the
Ohio into Kentucky, where he would find sympathy and support.
   But the raiders were now evidently in a state of great alarm. General
Hobson was close upon their rear. General Judah, who had left Portsmouth, at
the mouth of the Scioto, with a fresh band of horsemen, was vigilantly 
keeping between the rebels and the river to cut off all retreat in that way.
Almost abreast, in parallel roads, but a few miles apart, the two hostile 
bands rushed along their race-course to see who should first reach the ford.
With Morgan it had become a matter of life or death.
   Morgan, anxious only to escape, was very desirous to avoid a battle. The
patriot officers, knowing that the rebel force was not in one compact mass, 
but scattered in a long line of many miles, were endeavoring to drive them
all together, that they might at one blow capture the whole band. There were 
frequent skirmishes with the militia, who were pressed closely upon the
flanks of the invaders. Every day several of the invaders were wounded and 
occasionally one was killed. Many of the rebels from sheer exhaustion were 
unable to keep up with the march, and straggling behind, were picked up by
the patriots. They represented the rebels in excellent spirits; that they 
were confident that they would continue their raid successfully until they
crossed the Ohio and took refuge in Virginia. There they hoped to be joined
by a large force under General Lee, and to make a brilliant march upon 
Washington.
   The hotly-pursued and weary band reached Portland, about thirty miles from
Pomeroy, late in the night of Saturday, July 18. It was "a night of solid
darkness." A small barricade had been hastily thrown up at the ford, which
was defended by only two or three hundred infantry. Morgan could easily have
brushed them away, and could have continued unopposed across the stream, shallow
in the summer drought. But fortunately he did not know how feeble the defenders
were; he could not reconnoiter in that Egyptian darkness. And it was too
hazardous, under those circumstances, to venture upon a night attack. Thus
two or three hours, so precious to him, were lost. 
   The people of Marietta, quite an important town a few miles further up the
river, heard of the march of Morgan toward Buffington. The town was thrown
into intense excitement. Merchants and clerks, gentlemen and laborers, were
all eager to bear a hand in the chastisement of the audacious raiders. Captain
Wood, of the Eighteenth Regulars, had been stationed at Marietta, as a 
recruiting officer. He was persuaded by the eager citizens to take the command
and lead them to the fray. At one hour's notice these heroic men started from
their homes for the field of deadly battle and of blood. Their only uniform
was the halo of patriotism with which each one was enveloped. Their arms were
such as they could most readily grasp.
   The party from Marietta reached Buffington on Saturday afternoon. Rumors
of Morgan's near approach increased every moment. Captain Wood found here a
steamer aground, loaded with flour and with but two men on board. The rest
of the crew had left. The steamer and its cargo would have been a precious
prize for the rebels. Captain Wood seized the steamer, threw enough flour
over to lightener her, got up the steam, and ran her out of the range of 
Morgan's guns.
   The river road, by which Morgan came, runs very close along the banks of
the stream. On this same road General Hobson's command were in close and eager
pursuit, but a few hours behind. About two miles back from the shore there is
a long, low range of hills over which there is a road leading to the river 
near the island. About three hundred yards about this road there was a private
road, leading into some large corn-fields, and separated from the public
mountain road only by a large wheat-field.
   The rebels encamped in the corn-field on their arrival at this point opposite
the island. After a few hours of rest they were all ready to accept the wager
of battle with the Union troops, who they knew were pursuing them. The rebels
had planted their artillery on a swell of land which commanded the road over
the hills along which General Judah's troops were advancing. During the night
this patriot force had been pressing forward as with tireless sinews. About 
dawn Sabbath morning they came abreast of the corn-field where the rebels were
encamped. A heavy river fog intercepted the view. The men could scarcely
see a rod before them. The patriot troops were first made aware of the presense
of the enemy by the whistling of Minie' and pistol balls over their heads.
The road was narrow, with fences on both sides, and an impenetrable vapor
veiled everything from view.
   The Union troops, undismayed by the sudden assault, returned shot for shot.
But when Morgan opened fire with his artillery, the bursting shells threatened
great slaughter, and General Judah ordered the bugle to sound a retreat. Just
as the trumpet peal gave its unwelcome voice the sun declared himself on the
side of liberty and suddenly dispersed the fog. The patriot troops were thus
enabled to get the artillery of their command into line. The banner of our
country was unfurled to catch the fresh morning breeze as it came down the 
Ohio, and to gleam in the first rays of sunshine which came bursting through
the clouds.
   Exhilarated by the enthusiasm of the moment, the order to retreat was 
recalled, and instead of it the bugle sounded the inspiriting order to "charge
the enemy." With loud cheers the patriots rushed upon the solid battalions of
the foe. The fight was desparate. Many prisoners were taken on both sides. 
In the furious charge made by the patriots death reaped a large harvest from
the rebel ranks.
   At this moment the advance bridgades of General Hobson's pursuing columns, 
comprising the Second and Ninth Ohio Cavalry, under Colonel, subsequently
Major-General, A. V. Kautz, and the Eighth and Ninth Michigan Cavalry, and one 
section of the Eleventh Michigan Battery, under Colonel Saunders, attacked
Morgan's forces on the right flank and in the rear, throwing the foe into
great confustion. At this moment General Juday rallied his forces and joined
with Colonels Kautz and Saunders in charging the enemy.
   At this time Captain John C. Grafton, of General Judah's staff, was taken
prisoner. His captor, a rebel cavalrymen, with the savagery which often
characterized the rebels, leveled his pistol to shoot him after his captive
had surrendered and dismounted. To spring upon him with a pistol-shot, was
the work of but a moment. The assassin now lay dead at his feet, and Captain
Grafton was but on foot, and almost alone in the midst of the enemy. Glancing
around through the smoke and the tumult of the battle, his practiced eye 
spied a place where the rebel force was weak. With the sword of the fallen foe
in his hand he fought his way through the shattered line, reached the shore
of the Ohio, and hailing the gunboat Moose, which had come up from Portsmouth, 
was received on board. Then, by his knowledge of the position of the rebels, 
he assisted the executive officers in directing the fire of the steamer's 
guns, and thus aided essentially in the victory which was gained.
   As soon as the news of Morgan's advance to Buffington Island had reached
Portsmouth, the Moose, under Lieutenant-Commander Fitch, was towed up stream
by the Imperial, and arrived just in time to take Captain Grafton on board, 
and to render its efficient aid in the brilliant victory.
   At the moment when General Judah's command charged the enemy in front from
the road, Lieutenant O'Neil, of the Fifth Indiana Cavalry, with only fifty
men, came down by a lane behind the corn-field and gallantry charged two
regiments of the enemy. On, on without a pause the heroic little band spurred
their horses into the thickest ranks of the foe. Under iron hoofs they trampled
the stars and bars and of the rebel rangers. With every stroke of their sabers
and every shot from their pistols death claimed a victim. Blood crimsoned the
ground. Horses in the death-agony emitted their appalling shriek. The stillness
of the Sabbath was broken by groans and prayers, and curses and cheers. Shell
after shell came screaming into the rebel ranks, guided on their deadly mission
by the cool unerring skill of Captain Grafton.
   About this time the steamer Allegheny Belle arrived at the battle-ground.
Her single gun inflicted exemplary chastisement upon the rebels. The hero of
this gun was Nathaniel Pepper, a boy only eighteen years of age, the son of
Captain Pepper, of the Alice Dean. This boy, his face flushed with excitement
and his lips firmly set in manly resolve, and his eyes beaming with patriotic
fire, sent death to the rebels with every shot he fired.
   The battle, so fierce, and in which the rebels were entirely outnumbered, 
was of short duration. About eight o'clock in the morning it was all over.
The raiders, completely routed, fled in utter confusion. Some, in their 
bewilderment, ran directly along the road where General Hobson's troops were
advancing.
   The rebels left all their artillery on the field, which, with the spoils
of the camp, fell into the hands of the victors. Books, stationery, cutlery, 
women's garments, hoops, hats, caps and bonnets were strewed in confusion
through the rebel camp, together with many jaded, half-starved mules and horses
scarcely worth capturing.
   The patriot Colonel G. S. Wormer, of the Eighth Michigan Cavalry, in his
official report says: "During the log, tedious march of five hundred and
seventy-three miles, which took sixteen days, and that with short rations, 
they [his command] have endured it, as Michigan soldiers through this war
have done, without complaint. With cheerfulness and alacrity have my orders
been responded to by both officers and men. I was obliged to leave several
along the line of march, either sick or worn out, some on account of their
horses giving out, with no fresh ones to be procured at the time. Our arms, 
the Spencer rifle, proved, as before, a terror to the rebels. They thought
us in much stronger force than we were, when each man could pour seven shots
into them so rapidly. This is the first instance during the war, I think, 
where the proportion of killed was greater than the wounded. As far as reports
come in, at least three killed to one wounded, and this fact is owing to the
terrible execution of our rifles."
   About one thousand privates, one hundred minor officers, and Basil Duke, 
were included in the number of prisoners. John Morgan, with five or six
hundred of his band, escaped. After resting for a few hours to refresh the
exhausted patriot troops and their horses, the pursuit was again vigorously
resumed. A few moments after the feeble resistance of the rebels had disappeared, 
in their clattering flight, the patriot General Shackleford arrived with 
his command. His brigade was comparatively fresh. They therefore started
immediately in pursuit of the fugitive guerilla chief. Morgan fled rapidly
from the scene of his disaster, and, unincumbered with baggage of any kind, 
turned his horses' heads inland, intending, so spies reported, to make a 
detour through Muskingum and Guernsey Counties, then back to the river, 
crossing at whatever point he could back into Virginia.
   As the rebel band neared Athens County, the farmers grew intensely excited
with patriotic fervor, and resolved that if they could arm but two hundred
men they would fight the lawless freebooter. Every road along which the gang
were to pas was obstructed as much as possible by the farmers felling trees
and destroying bridges. At every impromptu barricade the rebels were stopped
at least for an hour. Aged men and young boys rallied for the work. Women
ministered with eager hands to the wants of the patriots. Refreshments were
always ready, and no man fainted from want of food or encouragement.
   Morgan rode as rapidly as possible through Morgan County, with General
Shackleford close at his heels. On the 24th of July the Union forces chased
Morgan fifty miles, when the guerilla chief, finding Colonel Runkle, with the 
Forty-fifth Ohio Regiment on one side, and General Shackleford on the other, 
turned again, like the stag at bay, desparately to give fight. For one hour
a fierce battle raged. The rebels, however, steadily worsted and hotly pressed,
retreated to a very high bluff, near McConnellsville, on the Muskingum.
   General Shackleford sent a flag of truce, demanding the unconditional
surrender of Morgan and his command. A personal interview was held between
General Shackleford and the rebel Colonel Coleman. The rebels asked an hour
for deliberation. General Shackleford granted them forty-five minutes. There 
were but three alternatives now left for the mauraders. They must either
fight their way through a triumphant and superior force, plunge down a 
precipice to meet almost inevitable disorder, rout and ruin, or surrender
themselves unconditionally. Colonel Coleman surrendered the command. It was
then found that the crafty Morgan had employed the forty-five minutes in 
stealing away, through a by-path, with about two hundred of his men. The
prisoners taken by General Shackleford were sent to Zanesville, and the pursuit
was instantly resumed.
   Quite a number of stragglers joined Morgan, and in the course of three
days his retreating band reached Salineville, a small hamlet not far from
Wellesville, on the extreme southern border of Columbiana County.
   At Salineville news of advance of the reckless raiders created a perfect
panic. Women and children were sent into the country for protection. Houses
and stores were locked and barred, and brave men prepared to fight. A regiment
of Pennsylvania infantry was posted upon some rising ground which commanded
the road approaching the town, and along which road Morgan must pass. In a
few moments after these arrangements were concluded, the rebels on their jaded
horses made their appearance. They halted and gazed appalled upon the formidable
preparations which had been made to receive them. Conscious of their inability
to pass such a barrier, they turned their horses' heads in another direction.
But suddenly, before they could advance a single step, Major Way, leading
two hundred and fifty men, from the Ninth Michigan Cavalry, with gleaming
sabers dashed in among them, cutting right and left.
   The rebels, exhausted in all their physical energies, and with hopes
discouraged by their long and unsuccessful march, in a general panic lost 
all presence of mind, threw down their arms and wildly cried for mercy. Morgan
was in a buggy drawn by two white horses. He lashed them furiously, hoping
to escape, but Major Way, on his fleet horse, overhauled him and seized the 
reins. Morgan sprang out of the buggy on the opposite side, and catching
a riderless horse, spurred him to his utmost speed. A few of his men followed
him. In the buggy were found Morgan's rations, consisting of a loaf of bread, 
two hard-boiled eggs and a bottle of whisky.
   The desparate rebel chief meeting three citizens of Salineville on the
road compelled them, with pistols at their heads, to act as guides, and
continued his frantic flight toward New Lisbon. Forced service is very
unreliable. One of the conscripted guideds seized a favorable moment to plunge
into one of the by-paths an