. . . on the 12th of this month a detachment of Capt. B. F. Blankenship's Company, (15) fifteen in number, entered Wise County, Virginia, near the Glades, [and] had an engagement with a band of Gurrillas that have infested Eastern Kentucky, and the border counties of Virginia, since the war has begun, and killed David Wells and Hiram Creech, two notorious Gurrilla leaders and captured four others and returned the same day back to Harlan County, Ky. . . . Again on the 16th of this month at Whitesburg in Letcher County, another detachment of the same company, fifteen strong, attacked Lieut. Houk of the Confederate Army and after three hours brisk skirmishing across the North fork of the Kentucky river, the river being very high, Houk retreated leaving four men killed and wounded. Houk had twenty two men in this skirmish, well mounted. During the skirmish, Lieut. Houk hoisted a white flag and proposed to Surrender. After parleying Some time, the river being between the belligerent parties, Capt. Blankenship discovered that the Flag was for the purpose to gain time; he ordered his men to fire at the Flag, which was instantly cut down. Houk then commenced a hasty retreat on to the Sand Lick fork of the Cumberland, but before leaving he destroyed all the skiffs and cannoes for several miles up and down the river about Whitesburg. That is all that was on the east side of the river . . . Again on yesterday morning, a Detachment of Capt. William Strongs Company of Breathitt under Lieut. William F. Lyttle, attacked a band of Rebels (or Gurrillas) who had formerly been led by Capt. Martin South, a son of Terry South of your place. After considerable Skirmishing, the Gurrillas was driven off but unfortunately Lieut. Lyttle was shot through the body and died in a few hours afterwards. James Lyttle, a cousin to the Lieut. who was killed, was shot through the Bowels and is supposed to be mortally wounded. Also a man by the name of [left blank] Davidson was severly wounded through the thigh. This was all the loss that we sustained. The Gurrillas lost two killed dead. We had no means to ascertain the number of their wounded if any. This occurred on Quicksand about thirty five miles above here . . . On last Friday a Squad of Captain F. M. Vaughn's Company Captured and killed Henry Wills, another notorious Gurrilla in the County of Wolf about 18 miles from this place. This man, Henry Wells had committed many murders and Thefts in the last three years . . . Thus you can very readily percieve that we are not handling the Gurrillas with Kidd Gloves . . . (The "Guerrilla Letters", Kentucky Military History Museum)