The next day after the decisive little victory at Boonville occurred an event which greatly raised the drooping spirits of the Secessionists, and was much exaggerated by them in order to offset their defeat at Boonville by Lyon.
Benton is one of the interior Counties of the State, lying on both sides of the Osage River. In 1860 its people had cast 74 votes for Lincoln, 306 for Bell and Everett, 100 for Breckinridge, and 574 for Stephen A. Douglas. All the County officials and leading men were Secessionists, and doing their utmost to aid the rebellion; still, the Union people, under the leadership of A. H. W. Cook and Alex. Mackey, were undaunted and earnestly desirous of doing effective service for the United States. Cook and Mackey had been warned to leave the State, and Cook had done so, but returned to take part in the capture of Camp Jackson, and afterward went back to his home to organize the Germans and Americans there for their own defense.
A meeting was held at which the Stars and Stripes were raised, and nine companies of Home Guards organized, sworn into service, and given arms. These companies went into camp in a couple of barns some three miles south of Cole Camp, where their presence and support to the Union sentiment was the source of the greatest irritation to the Secessionists, who attempted to disperse them by legal processes, and failing in this, determined to attack them. In the meanwhile all but about 400 of the men were allowed to return to their homes to put their affairs in order for a prolonged absence.
About 1,000 Secessionists, under the command of Walter S. O'Kane, marched on June 19 to attack them. Col. Cook was informed of the intended attack and prepared for it by throwing out pickets and summoning his absentees.
At 3 o'clock in the morning of June 20 the Secessionists reached the pickets, whom they bayonetted to prevent their giving the alarm, and rushed in upon the sleeping Unionists, pouring volley after volley into the barns. The men in one of the barns had been warned, but were prevented from firing by the Union Flag which the Secessionists carried. Many of them who managed to get out of the barns were rallied behind the corn cribs, and began an obstinate fight which lasted till daylight. The absentees, whom Col. Cook had summoned, came up during the engagement, but not being able to comprehend the situation, rendered no assistance. Finally all the Union men got together and retreated in good order, repulsing their pursuers.
The reports as to this affair are so conflicting that it is difficult to determine the truth. It seems pretty certain that Col. Cook had only about 400 men. He reports that he was attacked by 1,200, but the Secessionists say that O'Kane's force was only 350. Cook reports his loss as 23 killed, 20 wounded, and 30 taken prisoners, while Pollard, the Secessionist historian, insists that we lost 206 killed, a large number wounded, and over 100 taken prisoners, with the Secession loss of 14 killed and 15 or 20 wounded. Probably the truth lies between these two extremes, the only definite thing being that the Secessionists captured 362 muskets.
There were five or six prominent Secessionists among the killed, one of them being Mr. Leach, the editor of the Southwestern Democrat.
Col. Cook gathered up his men, received some additional recruits, some arms and ammunition, and pushed on to Warsaw, on the Osage, one of the points of concentration indicated by Gen. Price, capturing 1,500 pound cans and 1,500 kegs of fine rifle powder, many tons of pig-lead, 70 stand of small-arms, a steamboat-load of tent cloth, a lot of State Guard uniforms, four Confederate flags, and 1,200 false-faces which had been used by the "border ruffians" in their political operations in Kansas. A little further on they surrounded and captured 1,000 Secessionists, and paroled them on the spot.