That is a very interesting blog that you have Mr. Mathews. The general theme of Mo in the CW history was that the Kansas troops made the irregular war much worse by burning and pillaging the Missourians. Michale Fellman in the "Inside War" makes a good point in that many of the Kansans were recent emigrants from New England and they saw Mo has a backwards hell hole full of neantherthals which they nick named "pukes". Combine this with raids from pro slavery Missourians during the bleeding Kansas conflict of 1856 to 1859 and one has the recipe of a tragic conflict. Kansas troops therefore caused many Missourians to join what the Union would refer to has bushwackers the story of Cole Younger being a good example. Also any Union soldier with the word Kansas on his sholder patch had carte blanche not to be punished no matter what he did in Mo. Gen. Halleck in the OR's hated Kansas troops and couldnt wait to get them out of Mo because they converted so many Missourians to the CSA cause.

Would it be fair to blame Kansas soldiers has the villians of the Mo CW conflict? Maybe there there are other historicals interpretations?

Leonard