Expanding upon our recent posts regarding the 1862 Prairie Grove Massacre in Callaway County, this From the Oct. 31, 1906 Palmyra Spectator, reprinting an article originally appearing in the Fulton Telegraph--

"....When Krekel was quartered at the insane hospital and Hartman was at the courthouse at Fulton, some of the darkest and bloodiest deeds imaginable were committed by their men, who had among them as infamous and as immoral a set of brutes as ever enlisted under the command of a reckless thieving scoundrel.

"The theft of horses and feed and the burning of feed, barns and homes was a common occurrence. The assaulting of women was pastime for some of the militiamen. The assassination of innocent non-combatants was target practice for them.

"Without any provocation or cause whatever the blue-coated devils shot to death Alex Reno, Will Scott, J.W. Smith, Will Roberson, James Brewer and his half-grown son. William Morris, Will and Dave Given. Charley Hill and a number of others whose names have been forgotten.

"When William Given, who was an old man, was shot he was on his knees praying 'Father, forgive them, they know not what they do,' and before he had finished his prayer a cowardly bullet was sent crashing through his brain...."