County, Mo. This party was surprised and attacked by a force of three
hundred confederates commanded by Major Livingston, and defeated, with a
loss of sixteen killed and five prisoners, three of which belonged to
the 2nd Kansas Battery and two of the black regiment. The men of the 2nd
Kansas Battery were afterwards exchanged under a flag of truce for a
like number of prisoners captured by the negro regiment. Livingston
refused to exchange the black prisoners in his possession, and gave as
his excuse that he should hold them subject to the orders of the
confederate War Department. Shortly after this Col. Williams received
information that one of the prisoners held by Livingston had been
murdered by the enemy. He immediately sent a flag of truce to Livingston
demanding the body of the person who committed the barbarous act.
Receiving an evasive and unsatisfactory reply, Col. Williams determined
to convince the Major that was a game at which two could play, and
directed that one of the prisoners in his possession be shot, and within
thirty minutes the order was executed. He immediately informed Major
Livingston of his action, sending the information by the same party that
brought the despatch to him. Suffice it to say that this ended the
barbarous practice of murdering prisoners of war, so far as Livingston's
command was concerned.

"Colonel Williams says:

'I visited the scene of this engagement the morning after
its occurrence, and for the first time beheld the horrible
evidences of the demoniac spirit of these rebel fiends in
their treatment of our dead and wounded. Men were found with
their brains beaten out with clubs, and the bloody weapons
left by their sides and their bodies most horribly
mutilated.'

"It was afterwards ascertained that the force who attacked this foraging
party consisted partially of citizens of the neighborhood, who, while
enjoying the protection of our armies, had collected together to assist
the rebel forces in this attack. Colonel Williams directed that the
region of country within a radius of five miles from the scene of
conflict should be devastated, and is of opinion that this effectually
prevented a like occurrence in the same neighborhood.

"Subsequently, while on this expedition, the command captured a prisoner
in arms who had upon his person the evidence of having been paroled by
the commanding officer at Fort Scott, Kansas, he was shot on the sp