August 26, 1863, Kansas City, Mo.,
Brigadier-General Thomas Ewing, Jr. to Major General John M. Schofield

KANSAS CITY, MO., August 26, 1863.

  Maj. Gen. JOHN M. SCHOFIELD,
Commanding Department of the Missouri, Saint Louis, Mo.:

My troops are still in pursuit. Quantrill's men are scattered, the worst having gone out of the border counties. At last reports we have killed from 50 to 60. I have ordered all families out of the border counties of Missouri in fifteen days, allowing Union men to remain at or come to military stations, or go to the interior of Kansas, and compelling all the rest to leave the district. I will destroy or take to stations all forage and subsistence left in those counties after date fixed for re-moral. I have written you the reason for issuing the order; I am sure you would approve if here. This raid has made it impossible to save any families in those counties away from the stations, for they are all practically the servants and supporters of the guerrillas. I anticipate the collection on the border of a large part of the guerrillas of Southwestern Missouri to resist or revenge the execution of this measure. If you can send me more troops, please do so. I can use the Twenty-fifth Missouri or the Tenth Kansas to good advantage garrisoning the posts. There has been no failure to exert every possible effort to catch Quantrill, except at Paola, Friday night, when a great occasion was lost. I will see that the censure for that falls where it belongs. The charges set afloat from Leavenworth are false and malignant, so far as they apply to me and Major Plumb, and are instigated and paid for by political Quantrills.

 THOMAS EWING, JR.,

Brigadier-General.

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