nt,
paternal, inflexible as to what he considered principle, was to point
the way which 100,000 young Missourians were to follow through a
thousand red battlefields.

Nathaniel Lyon, short of stature, red-haired, in the prime of manhood
and perfected soldiership, fiery, jealous for his country's rights and
dignity, was to set another 100,000 young Missourians in battle array
against their opponents, to fight them to complete overthrow.

After they withdrew from the conference, Gov. Jackson, as Price's
trumpeter, sounded the call "to arms" in a proclamation to the people of
Missouri.

118

[Illustration: 118-The St Louis Levee]

CHAPTER VII. GEN. LYON BEGINS AN EFFECTIVE CAMPAIGN

Gen. Sterling Price was soldier enough to recognize that Gen. Lyon was a
different character from the talking men who had been holding the center
of the stage for so long. When his trumpet sounded his sword was sure to
leap from its scabbard. Blows were to follow so quickly upon words as to
tread upon their heels.

At the close of the interview of June 11, Gen. Lyon, with Col. Blair and
Maj. Conant, returned to the Arsenal, while Gov. Jackson and Gen. Price
hurried to the depot of the Pacific Railroad, where they impressed a
locomotive, tender and cars, and urged the railroad men to get up steam
in the shortest possible time. Imperative orders cleared the track ahead
of them, and they rushed away for the Capital of the State with all
speed.

At the crossing of the Gasconade River they stopped long enough to
thoroughly burn the bridge to check Lyon's certain advance, and while
doing this Sterling Price cut the telegraph wires with his own hands.
The train then ran on to the Osage River, where, to give greater
assurance against rapid pursuit, they burnt that bridge also.

Arriving at Jefferson City about 2 o'clock in the morning, the rest
of the night was spent in anxious preparation of a proclamation by the
Governor to the people of Missouri, which was intended to be a trumpet
call to bring every man capable of bearing arms at once to the support
of the Governor and the furtherance of his plans.

119

According to the Census of 1860 there were 236,402 men in Missouri
capable of bearing arms, and if the matter could be put in such a way
that a half or even one-third of these would respond to the Governor's
mandate, a host would be mustered which would quickly sweep Lyon and his
small band out of the State. The proclamation