| Big Lot of Prisoners Captured At Big Bend
Wheeling Intelligencer, December 27, 1861
Capt. Baggs and Major Trimble arrived yesterday from Wirt County, having in charge some thirty-four prisoners, most, if not all of whom, belonged to the somewhat notorious Moccasin rangers, who have been pillaging and murdering throughout Wirt, Roane, Calhoun, Gilmer and adjoining counties, for some considerable length of time.
The prisoners were captured by the men of the 11th Virginia Regiment, of which Capt. Baggs and his company are now members. They were found at Big Bend and at their homes in different parts of the counties named.
The cold weather of the past three or four days drove them into their homes. The music of their popular their homes. The music of their popular song "Never mind the weather," froze in their throats and they had to seek shelter. They had eaten up everything in the woods, including hoop pole bark and were forced to come into a civilized neighborhood to get something to eat.
We have no hesitation in saying that they are the hardest looking set of vagabonds we ever saw. Some of them are lame, halt, and frosted, and there is scarcely a comfortable suit of clothes in the whole crowd. Among the number is the notorious Dan Dusky, who is said to have boasted that he had a little graveyard of his own in which he had buried a considerable number of Union men.
Coming up on the boat during Christmas day, Capt. Baggs got a pitcher of whisky and gave the "pet lambs," as he calls them, a Christmas drink all around. When the prisoners were formed in line and started from the boat to the Atheneum, Capt. Baggs instructed his men to knock the first man down who insulted any of the lambs .
The names of the prisoners are as follows: Joshua Tanner, Calhoun county; John S. Commens, Roane county; John Roach, Roane county; John N. Riley, Calhoun county; Henry B. Butcher, Roane county; Bingly Sharps, Wirt county; Jacob Varney, Jackson county; Pat Raferty, Calhoun county; John W. Stewart, Roane county; Wm. P. Stewart, Roane county; R. M. J. Shepard, Wirt county; David B. Somerville, Wirt county; J. J. Ingraham, Roane county; Reuben Full, Wirt county; Gamaliel Cane, Wirt county; Alex. Hessler, Wirt county; Wm. L. Parsons, Roane County; Samuel Hall, Roane county; P. H. Thomason, Roane county; Jefferson Ayres, Wirt county; Wm. Hickwer, Wirt county; Marion Coonrod, Wirt county; John Anderson, Wirt county; A. L. Collins, Roane, county; B. H. Catoral, Gilmer county; Wm. Stuats, Roane county; Henry Amick, Wirt county; David Enoch, Jr., Wirt county, Martin Shepard, Wirt county; Daniel Dusky, Wirt county; Geo. Dusky, Wirt county; Josiah Parsons, Jackson county; Geo. Gibson, Wirt county.
Six of the above prisoners were taken by Capt. Chase, on Mill Crook, in Jackson county. Capt. Chase, with a few men surrounded the house in which the Moccasins had taken refuge. After a short engagement one of the Moccasins was killed, another wounded and the six were captured, as aforesaid. |
