Massacre on the Nueces River; story of a Civil War tragedy. Page: 37 of 39
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34 THE MASSACRE ON THE NUECES RIVER
under command of Captain C. D. McRae of the Second Texas
Mounted Rifles.
Brave and fearless as I must frankly acknowledge Captain
McRae to have been, I am compelled to doubt to the point of
emphatic denial, the truth of that part of his report in which
the says, in effect, that as no quarter was asked by the Unionists
he had no prisoners to report. That the Unionists made a
determined resistance and fought with desperation is perfectly
true, for each man of them was a brave man, but that not one
of them, either wounded or unwounded, asked for quarter, is
contrary both to human nature and fact. It is simply im-
possible that not one of those who on that day, and subse-
quently, fell into Confederate hands while yet life lingered in
his body, surrendered without arms in his hands, and by that.
act, if in no other way, asked for quarter-for the treatment
which civilized people the world over accord willingly to a
prisoner of war. I know of my personal knowledge that only
nineteen of the Unionists were killed in battle. Six of the wound-
ed Unionists only, made their escape. What became of the
other wounded?
Commanding the men he did and knowing the country so
well, it would have been an easy undertaking for Major Tegener
to have ambushed and killed every Confederate command,
large or small, that was sent into the counties that were de-
clared to be in rebellion against the Confederate government.
But not willing to add fuel to the fires of hatred against Unionists
already burning in the bosoms of Confederate sympathizers,
not willing to inaugurate strife in Texas between neighbors
that would have laid waste a fair and smiling land and brought
grief and death to women and children, he and his neighbors
thought it best to leave the state and wait for better times they
felt sure were coming. It was while leaving, and leaving peace-
ably at that, that his party was attacked and so many of his men
murdered.
The members of the Union Loyal League were good citizens,
their occupations being farming, raising livestock, and in a
small way manufacturing. Two-thirds of them were Germans
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Williams, R. H. & Sansom, John W. Massacre on the Nueces River; story of a Civil War tragedy., book, Date Unknown; Grand Prairie, Texas. (https://texashistory.unt.edu/ark:/67531/metapth2409/m1/37/: accessed April 23, 2024), University of North Texas Libraries, The Portal to Texas History, https://texashistory.unt.edu; .