which had been
gathered there, and that as his situation was known to Gen. Fremont,
relief would be speedily sent to him.

210

In the meantime, every hour had swelled Gen. Price's forces. Some of
the Secession writers have claimed that there were actually as many as
38,000 men gathered in his camps. Of course, a large proportion of his
force was useless unless to help beat off a relieving column, because,
owing to the small extent of the position occupied by Col. Mulligan,
only a limited number of men could be employed against it, and 10,000
were as effective as 100,000. A very large portion of Gen. Price's
forces were men who flocked to his camp as to a picnic or a barbecue,
because something was going on, and they fell away from him again when
he began a backward movement, as rapidly as they came.

Then ensued for six days a very strange battle. Swarms of Missourians
crowded the ravines in the bluffs, behind trees, stones, the walls,
fences and chimneys of the houses, and whatever else would afford
adequate protection, and kept up an incessant fusillade upon the
garrison safely ensconced behind thick banks of earth. When a squad
occupying a secure shelter grew tired, or had fired away all its
ammunition, it would go back to camp for dinner, when their places would
be taken by others eager to share in the noise and excitement and have
a story to take back home of the number of Yankees who had fallen under
their deadly aim. If all these stories of the men "who had been at
Lexington" could have been true, more men would have been sent to
the grave than answered Lincoln's call for 500,000 volunteers. The
artillerists were as enthusiastic and industrious as the men with
"Yager" rifles and shotguns, and banged away with unflagging zeal and
corresponding lack of mortality. The walls of the college were badly
scarred, but the worst effect was that an occasional shell would take
effect among the horses, and drop on the ground carcasses which speedily
putrified under the hot sun, and added an unbearable stench to the
other hardships of the garrison.

211

This went on day and night, for the moon was bright, and there was
no reason why a man who had powder and shot, and could not get an
opportunity at any of the coverts during the day, should not put in
pleasantly a few hours at night.

Naturally a rain of bullets, even though they might hit rarer than
lightning strokes, had a wearing effect on the garrison.

Whil