After the loyal men had returned to their homes and the civil law had been fully restored I brought suits by attachment against the following persons, to-wit: William Nicks, N. Barnett, for aiding the parties in arresting and taking me from my home and abusing me while a prisoner. I attached their real estate which was well improved and valuable; procured a judgement of $8,000.00 against said real estate, procured an execution and ordered the sale of said real estate. Before the time for the sale Barnett and William Nicks came to me and admitted that Barnett was 1st Lieutenant and Nicks 2nd Lieutenant of Capt. Forshee's Confederate company, while I was held prisoner by said company and that I was shamefully and cruelly treated while a prisoner, but they were sorry for what they had done and hoped I would forgive them. Nicks further said to me, that he had saved my life; that while I was a prisoner, he overheard some of the Confederate soldiers agree that on the next night while I was asleep they would slip up and shoot me in the head, and he got his blankets and came and slept with me. I knew that Nicks brought his blanket and slept with me one night, but did not know why he did it.
Nicks and Barnett further said, "Captain you have us completely at your mercy; we believe you are a good man and we were friends before the war. You have a judgement against our homes and if you sell them you will turn us and our families out of doors and leave us destitute without any homes for our wives and children." I said, "I know it is hard, for my wife and children were driven from their homes because they were loyal to their government; but children shouldn't be held responsible for the acts of their parents and I will say to you now that I won't sell your homes, I will give them to your wives and children; we are commanded in the best book of all books to do good for evil; you men can each one pay me a small sum for expenses and I will satisfy judgement." Barnett paid me $150. Nicks made a deed to some tax lands and I entered satisfaction on the judgements. They both said to me that they ever would be grateful for what I had done for them.
The country began to settle up and the people, irrespective of past associations, formed new ones, especially the sons and daughters of those who wore the blue and the gray, and seemed to forget that they had ever been enemies. As time sped on these attachments ripened into love. I had but two daughters living. Nancy E. Monks, the oldest, married V. P. Renfrow, the son of a Confederate; they have two children, a son, Charles, and a daughter, Mattie M., now grown. Mary M. Monks, who married H. D. Green, whose father, a Confederate colonel, died in the service. They have five children living and one dead, one girl and four boys. Their children are Mattie E., now Mattie E. Bugg; Will H. D., Frank, Russell and Dick. Adeline Turner, whom I had raised, married Jacob Schoffler, a Union soldier, and has ten children, four boys and six girls. Abraham Roach, a boy who had made his home with me since infancy, married Mattie Hunt, a daughter of Jesse Hunt, a Union soldier, has three children living, two girls and one boy, Maggie, Frank and Bernice. I don't believe that there is any person that loves their children better than I do, and I don't see any difference between my grandchildren and my own children. I love my sons-in-law as well as my own children; I love the girl and boy that I raised, and their families feel as near to me as my own. They are flesh of our flesh and bone of our bone, and our highest duty to God and them is to teach them patriotism and loyalty to their government and that their first duty is to God and their second duty to their country.
FRANK GREEN AND CHARLES RENFROW.
God forbid that we ever have any more civil war. War is the enemy of good society, degrades the morals of the people, causes rapine and murder, destroys thousands of lives, brings misery and trouble upon the whole people, creates a government debt that our children will not see paid, makes friends enemies. God forbid that any more sectional strife ever may grow up among the people; may there be no North, no South, no East, no West, but let it be a government of the whole people, for the people and by the people. May the time speedily come when the civilized nations of the earth will know war no more; when the civilized nations meet in an international congress, pass an international law that all differences between nations shall be settled by arbitration. May this nation in truth and in deed become a Christian nation and every man speak the truth to his neighbor and adopt the Golden Rule, "Do unto others as you would have them do unto you."
I take pleasure in giving the names of some of the loyal men who resided in Howell county in 1861, at the commencement of the Civil war, who stood for the Union in the dark hour when patriotism and loyalty to country were tested: John McDaniel, sr., John McDaniel, jr., Jonathan Youngblood, George Youngblood, David Nicholass, Thomas Wallace, Martin Keel, Thomas Nicholass, Newton Bond, William Hardcastle, Siras Newberry, William Newberry, David Henson, John Black, sr., Daniel Black, Peter Lamons, John Lamons, Solomon Lamons, Thomas Lamons, Thomas Brisco, Morton Langston, Stephen Woodward, Seth P. Woodward, Dr. D. D. Emmons, Alfred Mustion, W. D. Mustion, John Mustion, Wesley Cordell, Hugh Cordell, William Maroney, Henry Maroney, Collins Coffey, John Coffey, William Coffey, John Chapin, Silas Chapin, Benjamin Alsup, Andrew Smith, Andrew V. Tabor, Josiah Carrico, Josephus Carrico, John Dent, Esau Fox, Thomas O. Brown, Jacob Shoffler, Thomas Rice, sr., Thomas Rice, jr., John W. Rice, Nathaniel Briggs, Captain Lyle, —— Rhodes, Jesse Hunt, Joseph Spears, James West, Jesse West, Dent West, Thomas Kelley.
I will give the names of a few of the men of Douglas county who remained loyal to their country in 1861: Joseph Wheat, John Wheat, Ervin King, John Coats, Locke Alsup, William Alsup, Thomas Alsup, Jack Alsup, Shelt Alsup, Aaron Collins, William Collins, Toodie Collins, Doc Huffman, Jariah Huffman, Madison Huffman, William Huffman.