On about May 11, 1864 the final act of the Major Hynes feud began. Lieutenant Colonel Benteen sent to Vicksburg for the balance of the regiment still there and the "books, papers, and records of the regiment." Major Hynes , released from arrest and commanding the stay-behinds at Vicksburg, "refused to send them." Benteen spent the better part of two months attempting to get action, making two trips in person to Vicksburg to accomplish this. by the time he succeeded in getting action, Major Hynes' court-martial findings had been published. the unlucky Hynes was dismissed from the Army. He repaired to St. Louis to begin a thirty-year struggle to clear his name. He never succeeded. Meanwhile Benteen's regiment, reduced to about 200 men, were off on expedition to Guntown, Mississippi with the rest of the brigade and a large infantry force. The expedition was commanded by Brigadier General Samuel D. Sturgis, the same man who had commanded the retreat from Wilson's Creek in 1861. On Friday 10 June 1864, Sturgis encountered Confederate Nathan Bedford Forrest about six miles from Guntown at a place called Brice's Crossroads. The result was a disaster for the Union troops there.
Benteen was not present, being involved in getting his men and records from Vicksburg. The skeleton 10th Missouri Cavalry was commanded by Major Hal Williams. And, by all accounts it was Winslow's Brigade that kept the disaster from being a complete rout.
On the next page it also refers to the 'stay-behinds"
Benteen in the mean time had finally succeeded in getting the balance of the regiment and it's books, papers, etc. out of Vicksburg. Unfortunately, on 21 July their transport, the steamboat B.M Runyan, struck a snag in the river near Greenville, Mississippi " and in fifteen minutes went to pieces." No lives were lost, but the regiment was stripped of "wagon train, much quartermaster and ordnance property; in fact everything but hope."
I will email copy of three pages to any email that requests them.