Capturing and Destroying

Here, John Russell Kelso describes the events that led to the capture of rebel captain Joseph Hale Mooney and the destruction of the Salt-peter caves in Arkansas, all of which transpired between November and December 1862. At the close of November 1862, Kelso and Capt. Milton A. Burch decided to make another expedition to Arkansas. Their goal was two-fold: to capture Mooney and his band, and to destroy the caves where the rebels were manufacturing salt-peter for the Confederate powder factories. On this expedition, Kelso and company marched into the enemy's country, taking prisoners, horses, and guns and destroying rebel property. All this they had accomplished without firing a gun. Major Gen. Samuel R. Curtis claimed that this was one of the most brilliant achievements of the Civil War.