INTRODUCTION

The Civil War had its roots in animosity, antagonism— call it what you may.  Peace officially came April 1865, but that did not mean that good will and brotherhood were part of the package.  This was especially true along the Big Sandy.  Lawsuits were the order of the day.  Legal complaints were being signed almost as soon as news of Lee’s surrender was heard.

One of these court cases involved John L. Zeigler of Louisa.  Zeigler had commanded the Fifth West Virginia Infantry, U.S.  At the war’s end, he ran for Kentucky’s Ninth Congressional District seat.  Being on the victorious side in the late conflict, he probably anticipated an easy victory.

His only problem was that his opponent, John M. Rice, also from Louisa, had been a popular pre-war lawyer in Levisa Fork courthouses as well as Pike County representative to the Kentucky General Assembly.

Rice won the election and Zeigler promptly contested the result.  He argued that Rice had supported the Confederacy and as such he had been a traitor to the United States and was unqualified to run for office, much less serve.  Both men had both the determination and financial resources to pursue the case to a final result from the House of Representatives.  Deposition testimony for both sides was taken in Pikeville, Prestonsburg, Paintsville, Louisa, Catlettsburg, Salyersville, Greenupsburg, Flemingsburg, Vanceburg, Louisville, and Washington, D.C.  Many local and national figures were deposed, including Martin Thornbury, John Dils, Milton Ferguson, George Diamond, Humphrey Marshall, Lionel Sheldon, and James A. Garfield.  

The testimony is most interesting, not from their ages, residences, etc., but from the details they give.  The mind set of war participants along the valley is best summarized in the very last line of Lionel Sheldon’s testimony.

Rice kept the seat!

JOHN M. RICE

(Library of Congress)(No Zeigler image found)

41ST CONGRESS,}

HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES. MIS. DOC. No. 9. ZEIGLER vs. RICE. TESTIMONY IN THE CASE OF JOHN L. ZEIGLER vs. JOHN M. RICE, RELATIVE TO The contest for a seat in the 41st Congress as a representative from the ninth congressional district of Kentucky.

DECEMBER 13, 1869. Ordered to be printed. Notice of contest.

CATLETTSBURG, KENTUCKY, December 21, 1868.

SIR: You are notified that I will contest your right to a seat in the forty- first Congress of the United States as a representative for the ninth district of Kentucky on the following grounds: First. That under Article XIV, amendment to the Constitution of the United States, section 3, you are, and were at the time you were voted for at the election held on the 3d day of November, 1868, ineligible to the place of representative in the Congress of the United States, or to any other office of trust or profit under the United States, or under any State thereof, and for the reason— 1. That, as a member of the legislature of the State of Kentucky, prior to or about the beginning of the late rebellion against the government of the United States, you took an oath to support the Constitution of the United States, and thereafter gave aid and comfort to the enemies thereof. 2. That, as a member of the legislature of the State of Kentucky in the year 1861, you voted for a resolution, which passed the house of said State by a large majority, pledging the State of Kentucky to resist by force, and with all her powers, and to the last extremity, any attempt to coerce by arms the people of the southern States into submission to the laws of the United States, the people of the southern States being at that time in open rebellion. 3. That you engaged in rebellion yourself, being present with and aiding the enemies of the United States in their rebellion and insurrection against the government of the United States. Second. That notice of this disqualification on your part was given publicly to the voters of the district prior to the said election held on the 3d day of November, 1868, and during the time you stood as a candidate before the people; that this disqualification existed at that time; and that by reason thereof all votes cast for you were and are illegal and void; wherefore I was duly elected by the legal vote of said district on said 3d day of November last, and am lawfully entitled to and claim the seat in the forty-first Congress of the United States as representative for said ninth district of Kentucky. Respectfully, Hon. JOHN M. RICE, JOHN L. ZEIGLER. Louisa, Kentucky.

Notice to take depositions. FEBRUARY 8, 1869. SIR: You will take notice that I will, on the 24th and 25th days of February, 1869, at the office of the clerk of the Lawrence County court, in Louisa, Kentucky, proceed to examine and take the testimony of John Dils, jr., Martin Thornbury, and James Weddington, esq., of Pike County, Kentucky; and Rowland T. Burns, John Pigg, Milton Freese, John F. Hackworth, George Diamond, Henry Stewart, and Milton J. Ferguson, of Lawrence County, Kentucky; which examination and testimony will be taken before John M. Clayton, judge of the Lawrence County court, or John Harkins, a notary public of Floyd County, Kentucky; which testimony is to be used by means evidence before the House of Representatives of the Congress of the United States in contest between yourself and myself for a seat as representative from the ninth congressional district of Kentucky in the forty- first Congress of the United States; and if not completed on said days, shall adjourn from day to day until completed.

Respectfully, Hon. JOHN M. RICE, JOHN L. ZEIGLER. Louisa, Kentucky. 

Answer to J.L. Zeigler. Without waiving any exceptions as to notice, relevancy, competency, materiality, or regularity of the taking of depositions, or their legality, on the 24th and 25th of February, 1869, in the contested election of John L. Zeigler against John M. Rice, for a seat as representative from and of the ninth congressional district of Kentucky in the forty-first Congress of the United States, I agree that said depositions be taken at the law office of K.F. Prichard, in Louisa, Lawrence County, Kentucky, instead of the clerk’s office, in Louisa, Lawrence County, Kentucky, this 24th of February, 1869. JOHN M. RICE.

Depositions. The deposition of Martin Thornbury, taken on the 24th and 25th of February, 1869, at the law office of K.F. Prichard, in Louisa, Lawrence County, Kentucky, to be read as evidence before the forty-first Congress of the United States, in the contested election of John L. Zeigler against John M. Rice, for a seat as representative in the forty-first Congress of the United States from the ninth congressional district of Kentucky.

The deposition of Major MARTIN THORNBURY, a witness of lawful age, and examined by JOHN L. ZEIGLER:

Major Thornbury, state your age, place of residence, and occupation. Are you acquainted with the Hon. John M. Rice, representative elect to the forty-first Congress of the United States from the ninth congressional district of Kentucky? If you are acquainted with him, how long have you known him?

Answer. My age is forty- one years; a resident of Pike County, Kentucky; occupation a farmer. I am acquainted with the Hon. John M. Rice; I have known him for about twenty-five years.

By same: Q. Did you assist in arresting him during the war? if so, when and where was it? Did you have any conversation with him, while he was in arrest, in reference to his connection with the so-called confederate army? and if so, state as near as you can what he said.

A. I assisted in arresting him during the late war; I assisted in arresting him the day after the battle of Middle Creek. I do not recollect the day of the month of January, 1862. It was at Anthony Hatcher’s, opposite the mouth of Mud Creek, or nearly opposite the mouth of Mud, in Floyd County, Kentucky. I had a conversation with him during the time he was in arrest and at the time he was arrested. In regard to his connection with the so- called confederate army, he said if I would not let the Sowards hurt him, he would get his pistol and give it to me; he got the pistol and gave it to me. He said he had a good horse, and asked me if I would let them take it away from him? I told him no; that he might ride it himself. As we went on toward Paintsville, he asked me if they would put a rebel or a confederate officer in jail or prison, or would they let him have the bounds of the camp or town. I said, “No, John, they would not put you in jail; they will let you have the bounds of the camp.” Then he told me that he either had a confederate commission of captain, or would have in a few days. He told me that he would have taken command of a company in a few days if you had not have caught him.

By same: Q. Did the Hon. John M. Rice claim, while in arrest, to be an officer of the so-called confederate army?

A. He said just what I told you before.

Q. Who was encamped at Paintsville at the time the Hon. John M. Rice was arrested? What was done with him after he was arrested?

A. Colonel Garfield was with his forces, then in camp at Paintsville. He was taken and delivered up to Colonel Garfield.

By same: Q. Where was the place of residence of the Hon. John M. Rice at the time of his arrest, and how far from the mouth of Mud Creek, in Floyd County?

A. The residence of the Hon. John M. Rice at the time of his arrest was in the town of Louisa, Kentucky, about between fifty-five and seven miles from the mouth of Mud Creek.

Question by same: Q. Were there any rebel or confederate troops about the mouth of Mud at the time of the capture of the Hon. John M. Rice; and if so, how many and how far off were they from where you captured Mr. Rice?

A. There was some men there they said was rebels; I saw men there; I did not know whether they were rebels or not; they were just across the river from where I was, about three hundred yards.

Question by same: Q. Who did Mr. Rice tell you the persons were on the other side of the river from the place of his capture; were they rebels or federals?

A. John M. Rice told me they were rebels; he told me who two of them were Luke B. Sword and Harrison Ratcliff.

Question by same: Q. The day you captured Mr. Rice, did you see Platt Moore; was he under arms; had he and Mr. Rice been together before you saw him or Mr. Rice on that day? Tell all you know about this, and what Rice said.

A. I saw Platt Moore the day we arrested John M. Rice; Platt Moore had a gun, I think; we were in a run after him; we was about to catch him, and he dismounted and took to the hills, and we shot at him; this was just below the Stratton farm; this farm is just about five miles from Hatcher’s, where John M. Rice was captured. When we captured John M. Rice, he asked me where Platt Moore was; I told him we met him at the lower end of the Stratton farm, and we was about to catch him, and he dismounted and took to the hills. Yes, says Rice, there is his mare you have got; Rice said, he, Platt Moore, was our picket, that we sent here from the Middle Creek fight, to know if we should get out or not.

Question by same: Q. Was Platt Moore à rebel soldier or was he a federal?

A. He was not a federal soldier; they said he was a rebel soldier; I do not know whether he was or not. Question by same: Q. Did Mr. Rice ever tell you, at any time, that he had made money by his capture, and how much? Tell all he said about it.

A. About the close of the war, or about 1864 or 1865, I had a conversation with John M. Rice; in that conversation I told him in a joke that he ought to divide money with me that he made since I had captured him. “Yes,” says he, “you caused me to make from five to ten thousand dollars;” he said he had no idea but that he would have been with the rebels yet if I had not captured him.

Cross-examined by contestee’s counsel:

Q. Mr. Thornbury, how far do you reside from this place; and was you summoned to appear here and give your testimony?

A. I reckon it is about sixty- five or seventy miles from this place; I accepted a subpoena to appear at this place as a witness; I have the subpoena in my pocket.

By same: Q. You have given the various conversations with John M. Rice; you will now state, if you have knowledge of your own, that John M. Rice ever engaged in insurrection or rebellion against the United States, or gave aid or comfort to the enemies thereof; if so, give the particular acts.

A. Of my own knowledge I never saw him at it.

Question by same: Q. Do I understand you to say you have no knowledge of yours that he done a single act in contravention to the fourteenth article of the Constitution or not?

A. That is a question that I cannot answer. I caught him at the time above spoken of inside of the rebel lines; and I don’t know whether this was in contravention of the fourteenth article or not; this is all that I know of my own knowledge.

By same: Q. You will now state who was present at each of the conversations you have detailed in examination-in-chief?

A. Well, at the most of the times the conversation took place with Mr. Rice and myself while riding along the road from the place where I caught him to Paintsville. There were several others along at the time, either behind or before us, but I don’t know and don’t think that anybody heard the conversations except myself and Mr. Rice-we were riding side and side.

By same: Q. Were you a soldier at the time of Rice’s arrest, or any of the persons present with you; and was any soldiers with him at Hatcher’s at the time of the arrest; was the Sowards along at the time, if so, give their names?

A. I was a soldier at the time, but not mustered into the United States service; most all those that were with me were soldiers, some were not. There were two rebel soldiers, viz: David A. Powell and Stephen Low, with John M. Rice at Hatcher’s at the time of his arrest. I don’t know of my own knowledge that Powell and Low were rebel soldiers, but they claimed to be. I think Lewis Sowards, M.C.W. Sowards, Thomas J. Sowards, and Henry C. Sowards, were along with me when the arrest was made.

By same: Q. You will tell the state of feelings and threats of the Sowards towards John M. Rice; and you will also state John M. Rice’s appearance and acts when arrested; if he regarded his life endangered; if Sowards and those with you; was not the Sowards with you to Paintsville; and you will also state what Rice said in the conversations you have detailed about his dread of them; and did he not call upon you to protect him from them? (Objected to by Zeigler’s counsel.)

A. I don’t know of any threats before his arrest; but I heard the Sowards say afterwards that if it had not been for me, they would have killed him. I know that the Sowards were very malicious towards Mr. Rice. Mr. Rice was very badly scared at the time of his arrest. I think he regarded his life in danger. He asked me to keep them (the Sowards) from killing him. The Sowards and those that were with me were guards to Paintsville; Rice asked me to keep them (the Sowards) from killing him, and asked me if I would let them kill him, and I told him I would not.

By same: Q. Did you ever see a worse scared man than Rice; and had he not good grounds to apprehend the Sowards would kill him; were they not very dangerous men. And you will also state if they were soldiers of the United States at the time, regularly sworn in, or any of the company with you; if any regularly sworn in, give their names. (Objected to by Mr. Zeigler’s counsel.)

A. I can say that Rice was very badly scared; but can’t say whether he was the worst scared man I ever saw or not. He, Mr. Rice, was in danger; but I don’t regard that he was really in danger from any of the Sowards, except Thomas J. Sowards. But I think he was in danger from T.J. Sowards. He might have been in danger from Lewis Sowards, but I don’t know. I did not regard any of the Sowards as very dangerous, except Thomas J. Sowards, and I did not regard him as a very dangerous man. I think that T.J. Sowards and Lewis Sowards were mustered into the United States service, all the balance, I think, had been sworn, but not mustered into the service.

By same: Q. What became of Sword and David Powell, spoken of by you at Hatcher; did Rice make any effort to get away or not?

A. David Powell jumped off his horse and ran away that night; Low was, as I was informed, released on bail; Mr. Rice made no attempt to get away that I saw.

Question by same: Q. You have spoken of a conversation with Rice in 1864 or 1865, in Louisa, about his dividing his money with you; now was not this during what is known as the oil excitement, and Rice had made some sales of land. You have said you were joking; did not you receive his words in the same way you gave yours? (Objected to by Mr. Zeigler’s counsel.)

A. What I said I said in a joke; whether he was joking or not I don’t know; this was during the excitement about oil lands in this county; Mr. Rice was engaged in the oil lease business.

Question by same: Q. Do you know what time Humphrey Marshall was recruiting on the Sandy?

A. Humphrey Marshall was on the Sandy in the latter part of 1861 or first of 1862; I know nothing about his recruiting only from hearsay.

By same: Q. Did you ever see a rebel commission for captain?

A. I never did.

By same: Q. Where was John M. Rice’s residence and business for several years prior to 1861?

A. Before the spring of 1861, Mr. Rice lived in Pikeville, Pike County, Kentucky, and did business there as an attorney. And further this deponent saith not. MARTIN THORNBURY.

Also, the deposition of R.T. BURNS, who, being sworn, states:

Examined by J.L. ZEIGLER:

Question. Mr. Burns, state your age, place of residence, and occupation; also, your place of residence in September, October, November, and December, 1861, and January, 1862.

Answer. I am almost thirty-five years old; I at this time reside in Louisa, Lawrence County, Kentucky; I moved to this place a little over a month since from Pikeville, Pike County, Kentucky, where I had lived since February 14, 1859; I resided in that place in September, October, November, and December, 1861, and January, 1862. I am and have been since 1858 a lawyer by profession.

By same: Q. Are you acquainted with the Hon. John M. Rice, representative elect from the congressional district of Kentucky to the forty-first Congress of the United States; and if so, how long have you known him; where did he reside in September, October, November, and December, 1861, and January, 1862?

A. I am acquainted with John M. Rice, and have been acquainted with him ever since I was a boy, to some extent. I have been intimately acquainted with him since 1857. Mr. John M. Rice resided in or at Louisa, Lawrence County, Kentucky, during September, October, November, and December 1861, and January 1862.

By same: Q. Was there any confederate forces in the Big Sandy Valley in October, November, and December 1861, and January 1862; if so, at what points were they stationed, and when and how long were they at each place, as near as you can remember?

A. There were confederate forces in Big Sandy Valley in those months; they were stationed first at Prestonsburg, Floyd County, Kentucky. This, I think, was in the last of September or first of October 1861; they remained there some time, perhaps a month or more, and moved on up the river, perhaps stopping at some points until they reached the Judge William Cecil farm, about one mile below Pikeville, Pike County, Kentucky, where they remained a few days, and then removed to the town of Pikeville, Kentucky, where they remained a few days and until the day after the Ivy Mountain battle, which was, as I remember, not far from 10th of November, 1861, when they returned to Virginia by way of Pound Gap, and remained out there until, as I remember, about the middle of December 1861; they returned to Kentucky under General Humphrey Marshall by the Beaver road, as I remember, and made their first camp that I know of on Middle Creek, Floyd County, Kentucky, near Prestonsburg; they called this Camp Recovery. I know they were at this point about Christmas 1861; from here I think they moved to or about Hager Hill, in Johnson County, Kentucky, about the last of December 1861, and from there returned to Middle Creek about the time of the Middle Creek fight, which was about 10th of January 1862, and then returned to Virginia by way of Beaver Creek through Pound Gap.

By the same: Q. State if you saw the Hon. John M. Rice inside of the military lines of the confederate armies at any of the places mentioned; if so, state at what places and the length of time at each of the places, as near as you can state, he remained inside of these lines.

A. While the confederate forces were stationed in Pikeville, Kentucky, I saw Mr. Rice inside of their lines; he was boarding in said town with Hibbard Williamson, I think, and the town was inside of their lines while they were stationed there. I think he was inside of their lines all the time they were stationed at Pikeville, Kentucky. He was there, if I remember right, before they came there; I may have seen him at some other time inside of their lines, but if I did I do not now remember it; don’t think I did.

By same: Q. Did you see him in Virginia in the fall or winter of 1861; state where and when it was, and how far from Louisa, Kentucky. Is it or not a fact John M. Rice retreated to Virginia with Colonel Williams’s forces after the fight at Ivy Narrows?

A. I saw Mr. Rice in Virginia in November 1861, and perhaps in December 1861. I saw him in a hotel in Abingdon, Washington County, Virginia; saw him there several times; I suppose Abingdon, Virginia, is about one hundred and eighty miles from Louisa, Kentucky; I know that John M. Rice went to Virginia about the time that Colonel Williams retreated from Pikeville, but do not know that he went with them; I think he went a little before them.

By same: Q. Did he return to Kentucky before or after General Marshall’s forces?

A. I think he came after Marshall got back into Kentucky. If I remember right, I saw him on his way about four miles this side of Abingdon, Virginia.

Question by same: Q. Was Mr. Rice ever in arms against the United States; was he ever aiding or abet- ting those engaged in armed rebellion against the United States; did he ever counsel or comfort those engaged in rebellion against the United States; did he ever seek or hold office under any power or government hostile or unfriendly to the United States?

A. If Mr. Rice was ever in arms against the United States, I don’t know it; I regarded Mr. Rice as a rebel, or perhaps more properly speaking, a sympathizer with those in rebellion; his conversations were such as to lead me to this conclusion. Further than this I do not know of his aiding or abetting those engaged in armed rebellion against the United States. If he ever counseled or comforted those engaged in rebellion against the United States, I do not know it; if he ever sought or held office under any power or government hostile to the United States, I do not know it; he may have done all these things, but I don’t know that he did. Upon reflection, upon a question heretofore asked, I now remember once seeing Mr. Rice inside of the rebel lines at Prestonsburg; I think while Colonel Williams or Colonel Ficklin was in command; I think in October 1861.

Question by same: Q. Was not Mr. Rice a man of influence and popularity in 1861; and was not he an open advocate of secession; and was he not an advocate of the provisional government of Kentucky, which had its representative in the confederate government at Richmond? What is the distance from Louisa to Petersburg [Prestonsburg]? (Objected to by Mr. Rice’s counsel.)

A. Mr. Rice was a man of influence and popularity in the year 1861; I don’t know that Mr. Rice was an open advocate of secession; I don’t know whether or not he was an advocate of the provisional government of Kentucky. Mr. Rice may have done all these things, but I cannot say that he did. It is forty-five miles from Louisa to Prestonsburg.

Cross-examined by Mr. Rice’s counsel:

Q. Mr. Burns, state whether or not it is true, that at the time Mr. John M. Rice came to Piketon, as you state, there was great alarm existing in the Sandy Valley as to what course the United States authorities would pursue toward those who entertained southern views or opinions; and is it not true, that upon the approach of the federal forces many people left home to avoid being arrested, and who never, up to the time of leaving or after it, aided or abetted the rebellion, and who returned home soon? (Objected to by Mr. Zeigler’s counsel.)

A. There was considerable excitement in Piketon at or shortly after Mr. Rice came there in fall of 1861. I think that all, or the most of them, who were sympathizers with the South were more or less afraid of the federal forces; and upon their approach a considerable number of the citizens left and went to Virginia and hired out; some of them had done nothing that I know of; the most of them who went away returned about the time Marshall came into Kentucky.

Question by same: Q. Please state whether or not you were not with Mr. Rice a great portion of the time after he first came to Pike, and up to the time of his arrest; and if so, do you know that he refused to join the confederates on more occasions than one? Do you not know that Rice incurred the displeasure of the rebel leaders because of his refusal to join their forces or enter the same; and state whether or not if Rice had ever held a commission as a rebel officer, or had ever actually aided the rebellion, it is not quite probable yon would have known it?

A. I was not with Mr. Rice but very little, as I now remember, from the time of his coming to Pike up to his arrest. I do not know that he ever refused to join the confederate forces; he may have done so, but I do not know it. I can’t say whether he incurred the displeasure of the rebel military authorities or not by his refusal to join them; nor do I know that he refused to join them. If Mr. Rice ever had a rebel commission, I don’t know it. If Mr. Rice had belonged to or acted with the rebel forces at or about that time, I think I would have known it; or, at least, seen him acting with them, if he had so acted; I was at the time publicly acting with them. As to his commission, I know nothing about it; I was in their employ and service a good part of the time; some of the officers staid at my house while they were in Pikeville, and if Mr. Rice had any connection with the command I did not then, nor do not now, know it.

Question by same: Q. How long did Rice stay at Piketon after he first came there; with whom did he stay; and how long was it after Rice first came to Pike until Marshall came into Kentucky with forces? Do you know who came to Piketon with Rice?

A. Mr. Rice staid at Piketon, or in that country, from the time he came in the fall until Colonel Williams retreated in November 1861; I think he boarded with Hibbard Williamson while in town; I think it was some three months, perhaps not so long, from the time that Rice came to Piketon until General H. Marshall came into Kentucky with his forces.

Question by same: Q. You will state if you know whether or not Mr. Rice did not have a large amount of outstanding debts due him in Pike County at the time he came there; whether or not Mr. Rice had not for several years before 1860 lived at Piketon, and practiced law there; and say whether or not you know if Mr. Rice, during his stay at Pike, was not settling up his business, and collecting, or attempting to collect, money due him.

A. Mr. Rice had lived for several years before 1861 at Pikeville, and was a lawyer with considerable practice; I suppose had a good many outstanding debts; I know he had some; I don’t know whether he was collecting, or trying to collect, his debts at that time.

Question by same: Q. You speak of having seen Mr. Rice at Abingdon, Virginia; state if you know what he was doing while there.

A. I don’t know that he was engaged in anything; he was stopping at a fine hotel together with others who had went out from Kentucky, among whom were Mr. John Hackworth, C. Cecil, jr., and others; Mr. C. Cecil, jr., was sick at the time.

Question by same: Q. Can you state the distance between the battleground of Middle Creek and A.W. Hatcher’s, in Floyd County?

A. It is about fifteen miles.

Q. Were you in January 1862, acquainted with L.B. Sword and Harrison Ratcliff; if so, where did they reside; how long had you known them; and did they at that time belong to the confederate army?

A. I was at that time well acquainted with Mr. L.B. Sword and Harrison Ratcliff, and had known them since 1859; I don’t think either of them belonged to the army at that time.

Question by same: Q. Please state whether or not it was not true at that time that officers with the rank of captain in the rebel army did not so act without commissions; or do you know of any officer of less rank than a colonel having or holding any commission from any general or person?

A. I don’t know anything about that. R.T. BURNS.

Also, the deposition of MILTON J. FERGUSON, a witness of lawful age, and first duly sworn:

Examined by JNO. L. ZEIGLER:

Question. Judge Ferguson, state which of the belligerents first established a camp in northeastern Kentucky in the year 1861.

Answer. I cannot state of my own knowledge as a historical fact; I understand that the confederates established theirs first. I gather this from the history of the times and from my intercourse with the confederates during the war.

By same: Q. When was it the federal forces first occupied Louisa, Lawrence County, in 1861?

A. I do not know; I have no actual knowledge.

By same: Q. When was the first military camp established in the Sandy Valley, on the Kentucky side, and where was it established?

A. My information from the sources indicated in the first answer is that it was sometime in September 1861, at Prestonsburg, Floyd County, Kentucky, and established by the confederates.

By same: Q. How long after the camp was established at Prestonsburg, Floyd County, Kentucky, until a federal force occupied the Sandy Valley, in Kentucky?

A. I have no actual knowledge; but I understand from the same sources before mentioned that it was about two months later. They retired, and returned again in December 1861.

Cross-examined:

Q. Mr. Ferguson, please state what position you ever held, if any, in the confederate army.

A. A commission of colonel of cavalry, and a command of a regiment.

By same: Q. Say whether or not you ever recruited one or more company or regiments for the said army; and if so, did you procure commissions for the officers, or did the confederate government issue commissions to recruit companies, or to captains of companies after they were recruited? State all you know about the custom or practice of the confederate authorities as to granting commissions to officers in their army; state all you know about it.

A. I aided in recruiting one regiment of cavalry, and procured commissions for the field and staff officers. The regiment was recruited in August and September 1862, and the commissions of the field officers bore date from 19th of January 1863. Under the directions of my superior officers, I organized other regiments and battalions, including the Fourteenth and Seventeenth Virginia cavalry and the Thirty- sixth and Thirty- seventh Virginia battalions. I recruited a company, and was captain commanding battalion before the organization. From my acquaintance with the manner of recruiting in the confederate army, it was by letter of authority from the general commanding a district or department, or from the secretary of war, and not by commission. I do not know that company officers ever were commissioned; the field and staff officers were commissioned; the company officers, so far as I know, were enrolled as officers by order only; this embodies about all I know about the custom in that respect.

Question by same: Q. If you were conversant with the custom, acting, and doing of the confederate secretary of war as to issuing commissions, please say what you know about it; if you ever did any business of this character in the confederate war office, say what it was, and when it was, and what was done.

A. I know nothing of the customs or doings of the secretary of war, except in reference to the particular business of which I have spoken. I procured the commissions of which I have spoken in January 1863, at the office of the secretary of war, in Richmond, Virginia. I was informed by the secretary of war that company officers were not commissioned; and I have no knowledge that my company officers ever were commissioned.

Question by same: Q. Colonel, where did you operate mainly during the war-I mean in what territory; did you operate near Louisa, Kentucky; and if so, how long; and if you ever invested Louisa with your forces, say so?

A. I was in October 1862, with a small force in Louisa, Kentucky; my command was attached to the army of northern Virginia, and to that portion of it which operated mainly in the valley of Virginia; I was not in the vicinity of Louisa more than two days.

Re-examined by JNO. L. ZEIGLER:

Q. Was you conversant with the usages, practices, and customs of the confederate army and its war department in reference to the manner its officers were authorized to act in 1861, and of the confederate forces in Kentucky in 1861?

A. I was not.

By same: Q. When was it you was conversant with the practices and usages of the confederate army and its war department; was it before or after its reorganization of the army? When was it the reorganization took place, if it ever occurred?

A. I understand the reorganization occurred about May 1862; before that time the troops bad been organized under State authority. When they were organized, they were turned over to the confederate authority. In the reorganization they were under the authority of the confederate government, and so continued until the close of the war. My acquaintance with the usage and practices of the confederate army began in February 1862.

Question by same: Q. Were you acquainted with the manner the provisional government of the Confederate States issued its authority to field officers of the regiments and officers of the line before the reorganization; was it by commission or appointment; and were there not brigades and regiments raised under authority from the confederate war department even before the State of Virginia turned over the State troops to the provisional government of the Confederate States?

A. I understand that the provisional government of the Confederate States ceased to exist on the 22d of February 1862; and before that time, I know nothing of the manner of organizing troops under the authority of the confederate government, or of giving appointment or commission to officers.

Question by same: Q. Where were you in the year 1861, more particularly in the months of June, July, August, September, October, and November?

A. From the 26th of July 1861 to the 9th of February 1862, I was within the federal lines, a prisoner. In the month of June 1861, I was in what was then Western Virginia, now West Virginia. And further this deponent saith not. M. J. FERGUSON.

Also, the deposition of JOHN F. HACKWORTH, a witness of lawful age, and first duly sworn:

Question. Mr. Hackworth, state your place of residence at this time and in the year 1861; also, if you were acquainted with the Hon. John M. Rice, representative elect from the ninth congressional district of Kentucky to the forty-first Congress of the United States.

Answer. I reside at this time in Louisa, Lawrence County, Kentucky. In 1861 I resided in Prestonsburg, Floyd County, Kentucky; I was then and am now acquainted with said John M. Rice, and have known him for fifteen years.

By same: Q. State if you saw John M. Rice in Prestonsburg, Floyd County, Kentucky, in 1861, during the occupation of that place by the confederate army; and, if so, how long did he remain inside of the military lines of said forces?

A. I saw John M. Rice in Prestonsburg, Kentucky, while said town was occupied by the confederate forces. I don’t know how long he was there. I don’t know that they had any lines or pickets while Rice was there.

By same: Q. State if you ever saw John M. Rice with the confederate army at any other place; if so, state where it was; and how many different places you saw him inside of the confederate lines.

A. I think I saw him at Pikeville. I saw him in Abingdon, Virginia.

By same: Q. Do you know where John M. Rice went after the fight at Ivy Narrows, in November 1861? Did he retreat out of Kentucky to Virginia with the confederate forces under Colonel J.S. Williams?

A. Mr. Rice went to Virginia after the Ivy Mountain fight; I think he went a little ahead of Colonel Williams’s command.

By same: Q. Was he armed or unarmed on the retreat?

A. If he was armed, I did not see any.

By same: Q. Do you know that he in 1861 aided the rebellion in any way or advised or encouraged any to engage in the rebellion or to aid it?

A. No, sir; I do not.

By same: Q. Did you in 1861 know of his writing to any, and advising them to engage in the rebellion, or aid those engaged in it? (Objected to by Rice’s counsel.)

Cross-examined:

Q. When you say that you saw John M. Rice twice within the confederate lines, and one of these times at Abingdon, you mean only that Abingdon was in the State of Virginia, and hence within the confederate lines?

A. That is what I mean. The confederate forces were not in Abingdon, but were between Abingdon and Kentucky, about Pound Gap, and about Gladeville; at least, there is where I saw them last.

Q. What was Rice doing, or what did he do, while at Abingdon?

A. He was not engaged at anything while I saw him. He and I were boarding at Benham’s Hotel.

Q. Did you have a good opportunity to know what Rice was doing while he was at Piketon and in Virginia? Did you go out to Virginia with Rice?

A. I think I had a good opportunity of knowing what he was doing in Virginia. My opportunities were not so good in Pikeville, as I was in the store, and very busy the most of the time. I don’t think I went to Virginia with Rice; Rice was before me. I went before the army.

Q. Did you live in Piketon during the time that Rice staid there?

A. I lived in Prestonsburg, and when John Williams’s goods were moved to Pike, I went with them and staid there a short time.

Q. Isn’t it true, Mr. Hackworth, that at the time you and Rice went to Virginia that great alarm existed among citizens as to what would be the course of United States forces toward them; and did or not a great many peaceable citizens leave home, go to Virginia, stay a while, and return home without entering the confederate service, or aiding and abetting the confederacy in any way? (Objected to by Zeigler’s counsel.)

A. The citizens of that country were considerably alarmed about that time as to the approach of the federal forces. There was a great many peaceable citizens that went to Virginia and returned without joining the rebels, or without giving aid or comfort in any manner that I know of; I cannot say they did not give aid or comfort, but if they did, I don’t know it.

Q. Do you or not know that Rice incurred the displeasure of the confederate leaders or soldiers because of his refusal to enter the confederate service?

A. I don’t know that the leaders said anything about it. But I heard the soldiers abusing all that did not go into the army.

Question by same: Q. Were the citizens of the Sandy Valley, who went out with the confederate troops at the time Mr. Rice left, Union or rebel in their principles; were they armed or not; did they give counsel to the rebels or not; did they give comfort to those engaged in rebellion against the United States?

A. I think the most of them were called rebels or southern sympathizers. There was one man along with us that was called a Union man. I don’t think they were armed; very few of them were armed, if any. If they gave counsel to the rebels, I don’t know it. They claimed to be southern men, and what they done I don’t know.

Question by same: Q. Was Mr. Rice ever in arms, to your knowledge, against the United States government; did you ever see him in counsel with the confederate officers; did he ever attempt to recruit a company; what did he say about recruiting a command in Kentucky, or did you ever hear him talk on that subject?

A. If Mr. Rice was ever in arms against the government of the United States, I don’t know it. I don’t remember ever seeing Mr. Rice in counsel with confederate officers. If he ever attempted to recruit a company, I don’t know it. I never heard him say anything about recruiting a company. If I did, I don’t remember it. And further this deponent saith not. J.F. HACKWORTH.

Adjourned to meet tomorrow morning at 8 o’clock.

JOHN M. CLAYTON, Judge of the Lawrence County Court. Met Thursday morning, February 25, 1869, pursuant to adjournment. JOHN M. CLAYTON, Judge of the Lawrence County Court.

The deposition of HENRY STUART, a witness of lawful age, and first duly sworn:

Question. Mr. Stuart, state your occupation and place of residence. Are you acquainted with the Hon. John M. Rice, representative elect from the ninth congressional district of Kentucky, to the forty-first Congress; and if so, how long have you known him?

A. I am an attorney-at-law, and reside in Louisa, Lawrence County, Kentucky. I have known Mr. Rice for twenty years.

By same: Q. State if you ever saw Hon. John M. Rice inside of the military lines of the confederate army; state where and when it was, and how long he remained inside of the lines at each place.

A. I saw John M. Rice at Prestonsburg in the fall of 1861, while Ficklin^[1] was in command; I don’t know whether I saw him there after Williams took command or not. While Ficklin had command they were organizing a regiment. When organized, Williams took command. I have no recollection of having seen Mr. Rice at Pikeville. I got there the day before the Ivy fight, and on the morning after the Ivy fight Williams retreated from Pikeville. I don’t remember of having seen Mr. Rice at any other time or place inside of the confederate lines. I don’t know how long Mr. Rice remained at Prestonsburg.

By same: Q. Do you know of John M. Rice, during the war, aiding the rebellion in any way or encouraging others to engage in it, or giving aid or comfort to the rebellion?

A. I do not, further than I have above stated. I only seen him inside of the confederate lines as before stated. Unless his presence, as above stated, was aiding or abetting, I don’t know of his ever having aided or abetting the rebellion.

By same: Q. Is it or not a fact, in the summer and fall of 1861, John M. Rice was a man of influence, and was an open advocate of the cause of the southern confederacy, and the then existing rebellion? (Objected to by Mr. Rice’s counsel.)

A. Mr. Rice was at that time a man of some influence; how much I cannot tell. Mr. Rice was regarded as a southern sympathizer; but I do not remember that I ever heard him advocate the cause of the rebellion.

Cross-examined:

Q. Is it that time that Rice, while at Prestonsburg, brought down on him the displeasure of the confederates because he would not join them?

A. I think I have heard him accused by some men of cowardice, and for not using more influence in the organization of the forces. This was from men from this section who were there and belonged to said organization.

Q. What was Rice doing whilst at Prestonsburg?

A. I don’t think I ever saw him doing anything, except walking about in that particular urbane manner of his, treating every man with the most profound courtesy.

Question by same: Q. At the time Rice went to Prestonsburg wasn’t there wide-spread alarm among the people of the Sandy Valley as to what would be the course of the federal troops towards those known as southern sympathizers; and didn’t a great many peaceable people leave home, stay a while, and return soon, and remain at home? (Objected to by Colonel Zeigler’s counsel.)

A. That was about the state of affairs in this section of the Sandy Valley at that time. Both sides were alarmed, hiding out, &c. A number of peaceable people left home, staid a while, and returned and staid at home. And further this deponent saith not.

STATE OF KENTUCKY, Lawrence County, slct: HENRY STUART. I, John M. Clayton, judge of the Lawrence County court, do certify that the foregoing depositions of Martin Thornbury, R.T. Burns, Milton J. Ferguson, John F. Hackworth, and Henry Stuart were taken before me, and were read to and subscribed by them in my presence at the time and place and in the action mentioned in the caption; the said Thornbury, Burns, Ferguson, Hackworth, and Stuart, having been first sworn by me that the evidence they should give in the action should be the truth, the whole truth, and nothing but the truth, and the statements of Martin Thornbury, reduced to writing in part by myself in his presence, and the remainder of it reduced to writing by R.T. Burns, in the presence of said Thornbury and myself; the deposition of R.T. Burns was reduced to writing by himself in my presence; the depositions of Milton J. Ferguson, John F. Hackworth, and Henry Stuart were reduced to writing in my presence, and in the presence of the witnesses, by R.T. Burns, by consent of John L. Zeigler and the counsel of John M. Rice; the said John L. Zeigler and his attorney and the attorney of John M. Rice being present at the examination. Given under my hand this 25th of February, 1869. JOHN M. CLAYTON, Judge of the Lawrence County Court, Kentucky.

Notice. CATLETTSBURG, KENTUCKY, March 27, 1869. SIR: Take notice that I will, on the twelfth, (12th,) thirteenth, (13th,) and fourteenth (14th) days of April, 1869, at the office of clerk of the Carter County court, in Grayson, in Carter County, Kentucky, proceed to examine and take the testimony of E.P. Davis, William Bowling, Thos. Horton, Benjamin Shepherd, John T. Shepherd, George W. Crawford, William Steele, and George Underwood, of Carter County, Kentucky, and John M. Burns, of Boyd County, Kentucky, which examination and testimony will be taken before Henderson, judge of the Carter County court, a notary public, or some other person duly authorized by law to take depositions; and on the twentieth, (20th,) twenty-first, (21st,) and twenty-second (22d) days of April, 1869, at the office of clerk of the Rowan County court, in Morehead, in Rowan County, Kentucky, proceed to examine and take the testimony of John E. Clark, John Hargis, J.M. Lewis, and Barnebas Heyden, of Rowan County, Kentucky, which examination and testimony will be taken before Roe, judge of the Rowan County court, a notary public, or some other person duly authorized by law to take depositions . And on the twenty-eighth (28th) and twenty-ninth (29th) days of April 1869, at the office of clerk of the Magoffin County court, in Salyersville, in Magoffin County, Kentucky, proceed to examine and take the testimony of R. Patrick, S. Adams, William Adams, Wiley Coffey, and J. Gardner, of Magoffin County, Kentucky, which examination and testimony will be taken before Archie Cooper, judge of the Mogoffin County court, a notary public, or some other person duly authorized by law to take depositions. And on the fifth, (5th,) sixth, (6th,) and seventh (7th) days of May 1869, at the office of clerk of the Morgan County court, in West Liberty, in Morgan County, Kentucky, proceed to examine and take the testimony of J. Gordon, Wesley Cox, Jack Spradling, and James Morgan, of Morgan County, Kentucky, which examination and testimony will be taken before William Myneer, judge of the Morgan County court, a notary public, or some other person duly authorized by law to take depositions. And on the thirteenth, (13th,) fourteenth, (14th,) and fifteenth (15th) days of May 1869, at the office of clerk of the Fleming County court, in Flemingsburg, in Fleming County, Kentucky, proceed to examine and take the testimony of L.L. Warder, George Hanners, William Fleming, J.A.H. Keerans, James A. Lawson, T.S. Bell, and Isaac Kelly, of Fleming County, Kentucky, which examination and testimony will be taken before judge of the Fleming County court, a notary public, or some other person duly authorized by law to take depositions. Which testimony is to be used by me as evidence before the House of Representatives of the Congress of the United States, in the contest between yourself and myself for a seat as representative from the ninth (9th) congressional district of Kentucky in the forty-first (41st) Congress of the United States; and if not completed on said days, shall adjourn from day to day until completed. Respectfully, Hon. JOHN M. RICE, Louisa, Kentucky.

Depositions. JOHN L. ZEIGLER. The deposition of William G. Fleming, taken at the office of the clerk of the Fleming County court on Thursday, May 13th, 1869, to be read on behalf of John L. Zeigler, in his contested case against John M. Rice, before the House of Representatives of the Congress of the United States, for a seat in that body.

Witness being first duly sworn, saith, in answer to interrogatories, viz:

Question. Are you a voter, and where do you reside?

Answer. I am a voter of Fleming County, and have been for fourteen (14) years, and now live at Fox Springs, in Fleming County.

Q. Were you present at any proclamation, speech, or notice, where the said Zeigler gave notice or made any statements as to the qualifications of his competitor, the said John M. Rice, for the said office of member of Congress of the United States?

A. John L. Zeigler made a speech in my precinct in Fleming County, (known as Muse’s Precinct,) a few days before the election for congressmen, (think it was on the Friday before, ) to an audience of about two hundred persons, and in his speech stated his competitor, John M. Rice, if elected, could not take his seat, being disqualified by the fourteenth amendment to the Constitution of the United States, and from having aided and abetted the rebellion, and from being caught in the rebel lines. And further deponent saith not. Sworn to before me this 13th May, 1869. WM. G. FLEMING.

T.S. ANDREWS, Notary Public. Adjourned over until Saturday morning, the 15th instant, pursuant to notice. T.S. ANDREWS, Notary Public.

The deposition of L.F. Warder, taken at the office of the Fleming County court on Saturday, the 15th day of May, 1869, to be read on behalf of John L. Zeigler, in his contested case against John M. Rice, before the House of Representatives of the Congress of the United States, (forty-first Congress,) for a seat in that body. Witness being first duly sworn, saith, in answer to interrogatories:

Question. Are you a voter, and where do you reside?

Answer. I have been a voter for seven years, and live in Flemingsburg, Kentucky.

Q. Were you present at any proclamation, speech, or notice, when the said John L. Zeigler gave notice or made statements as to the qualifications of his competitor, the said John M. Rice, for the said office of member of the forty-first Congress of the United States? and if so, state the time and place, and what John L. Zeigler said on that occasion; state it as near as you can, and how many persons probably were present.

A. I was present and heard John L. Zeigler make a speech at Mount Carmel, Fleming, Kentucky, on or about the 26th day of October 1868, and at said time and speech he gave notice to the people that his competitor, John M. Rice, was ineligible, and could not hold the office if elected, and if they voted for him their votes would be lost. He also stated that Rice was disqualified from holding office by reason of having given aid and comfort to the enemies of the government during the war. I suppose there was from one hundred and fifty to two hundred and fifty people present when he made these statements. And further saith not. Sworn to and subscribed before me this 15th day of May, 1869. L.F. WARDER., T.S. ANDREWS, Notary Public.

Notice. CATLETTSBURG, KENTUCKY, February 3, 1869. SIR: Take notice that I will, on the twenty-fourth and twenty-fifth (24th and 25th) days of February 1869, at the office of the clerk of the Lawrence County court in Louisa, in Lawrence County, Kentucky, proceed to examine and take the testimony of Rowland T. Burns, Milton Freese, George Diamond, and John F. Hackworth, of Lawrence County, Kentucky, which examination and testimony will be taken before John C. Clayton, judge of the Lawrence County court, or before some other person duly authorized by law to take depositions. And on the third (3d) day of March 1869, at the office of the clerk of the Greenup County court, in Greenupsburg, in Greenup County, Kentucky, proceed to examine and take the testimony of S. Elliot, John Seaton, and Augustus C. Vandyke, of Greenup County, Kentucky, which examination and testimony will be taken before D.I. McCoy, judge of the Greenup County court, or Jeremiah Davidson, notary public. And on the ninth (9th) day of March 1869, at the office of the clerk of the Lewis County court, in Vanceburg, in Lewis County, Kentucky, proceed to examine and take the testimony of Pleasant M. Stricklett and William Stricklett, of Lewis County, Kentucky, which examination and testimony will be taken before George M. Thomas, judge of the Lewis County court. And at the same place, Vanceburg, and same day, proceed to examine and take the testimony of George M. Thomas, of Lewis County, Kentucky, which examination and testimony will be taken before a notary public, justice of the peace, or some other person authorized by law to take depositions. Which testimony is to be used by me as evidence before the House of Representatives of the Congress of the United States, in a contest between yourself and myself, for a seat as representative from the ninth (9th) congressional district of Kentucky in the forty- first (41st) Congress of the United States, and if not completed on said days shall adjourn from day to day until completed. Respectfully, Hon. JOHN M. RICE, Louisa, Kentucky. Depositions. JOHN L. ZEIGLER.

The deposition of John Seaton, taken at the office of clerk of the Greenup County court, in Greenupsburg, Greenup County, Kentucky, on the third (3d) day of March, 1869, to be used as evidence before the House of Representatives of the Congress of the United States, in contest between John M. Rice and John L. Zeigler, for a seat as representative from the ninth (9th) congressional district of Kentucky, in the for-ty-first (41st) Congress of the United States:

Question by GEORGE M. THOMAS, attorney for John L. Zeigler:

Question. State your age, residence, and occupation.

A. I am in the forty-sixth year of my age; resident of Greenup County, Kentucky, near Greenupsburg; accountant, attorney at law, and notary public.

By same: Q. State if you were present at any time last fall when the contestant, John L. Zeigler, made a speech in Greenupsburg, Greenup County, Kentucky, while he was a candidate for Congress as representative from the ninth congressional district of Kentucky; and if so, state whether he said anything about the eligibility or ineligibility of his competitor and contestee, Hon. John M. Rice, to a seat in Congress from this district; state what he did say upon that occasion about the eligibility of Mr. Rice; also state the time and place.

A. I was present at the court-house in this place, Greenupsburg, last fall, before the presidential election, sometime in October, the exact day I do not now recollect; but it was the same day and time that Hon. Samuel McKee made a speech, when Colonel John L. Zeigler made a speech advocating his claims for a seat in Congress, in which he made the public declaration that John M. Rice was not eligible to a seat in Congress on account of his disloyalty; that said Rice had aided or given comfort to the rebellion. The declaration was made in the hearing of the Hon. Samuel McKee and all others in the house, in a clear and distinct voice. Colonel Zeigler further stated that he himself was then and always had been loyal to the government and true to its flag. This is the substance of Zeigler’s remarks, and as near the words used as I can now recollect them; and further, Zeigler stated that if the people did elect Rice, he could not take his seat.

By same: Q. State the number of persons and voters present at the time you speak of; and state also whether the appointment had been advertised before the day of the meeting.

A. The appointment had been made public for the meeting spoken of by printed advertisements posted up some time beforehand, and there was a large crowd present on the occasion named, as is usual on such occasions, except on court days; but the number of persons present I am unable to state.

Cross-examined by contestee’s attorney:

Q. By what authority did John L. Zeigler notify the voters of Greenup County of the disqualification of John M. Rice as a member of Congress? Did Zeigler on that occasion produce any papers or other evidence that went to substantiate the disloyalty of Rice, or did he merely assert the fact, without other proof?

A. He presented no papers nor proof of the disloyalty of Rice, excepting that he read or referred to some of the voters, if Rice, while a member of the Kentucky legislature, made the declaration stated by me in my examination in chief. JOHN SEATON

Also the deposition of S. ELLIOT, taken at the same time and place, and for the same purpose. Question by attorney for John L. Zeigler:

Question. State your age and residence.

Answer. My age is fifty-two years; my residence, Greenup County, Kentucky.

By same: Q. State whether you were present at a public meeting in Greenupsburg last fall, at which Captain McKee, and Colonel John L. Zeigler, the contestant, made speeches; if so, state what Colonel Zeigler said about the eligibility of John M. Rice, his competitor, to a seat in the Congress of the United States. State how many persons were present at the meeting, and whether the meeting had been advertised; if so, how extensively?

A. I was present at a meeting in Greenupsburg, at the courthouse, Greenup County, Kentucky, last fall, when Captain McKee and Colonel Zeigler made speeches. After the speech made by Captain McKee, Colonel Zeigler made a few remarks stating he was a candidate for Congress in opposition to John M. Rice. He, Zeigler, charged that John M. Rice was ineligible to the office, and at the same time produced the journal of the house of representatives of the legislature of Kentucky, showing that said Rice had voted against hoisting the United States flag over the State capitol at Frankfort, Kentucky; this was while said Rice was a member of the legislature of Kentucky; also charged said Rice for voting on a certain resolution in said legislature, regretting that certain northern States had voted men and money to assist in putting down the rebellion; also charged said Rice of giving aid and comfort to the rebellion. I am unable to say the number of persons present at the meeting. The courthouse was better filled than it usually is at public meetings. I seen advertisements of the meeting posted up in this and other counties for some considerable time before the meeting.

Cross-examined by contestee’s attorney:

Q. State the date of the house journal referred to by you, and whether that was all the papers or evidence produced by Zeigler on that occasion, and whether it is not the fact that the charge of disloyalty made by Zeigler against Rice was not founded upon Zeigler’s own assertion, outside of the documents referred to.

A. I do not remember the date of the journal, but think it was the journal of 1860, or 1861; he produced no other papers or evidence proving the disloyalty of Rice except the journal referred to above.

STATE OF KENTUCKY, Greenup County: S. ELLIOT. I, D.J. McCoy, presiding judge of the Greenup County court, do certify that the foregoing depositions of John Seaton and S. Elliot were taken before me, and were read to and subscribed by them in my presence, at the time and place and in the action mentioned in the caption; the said Seaton and Elliot both having been first sworn by me, that the evidence they should give in the action should be the truth, the whole truth, and nothing but the truth, and the statements of John Seaton were reduced to writing by him, in my presence, and the statements of S. Elliot reduced to writing by me in his presence, the contestant and his attorney being present, and the attorney for contestee being present also at the examination. Given under my hand this the 3d day of March, 1869. D.J. MCCOY, Presiding Judge of the Greenup County Court.

Notice. CATLETTSBURG, KENTUCKY, March 27, 1869. SIR: Take notice that I will, on the twelfth, (12th,) thirteenth, (13th,) and fourteenth (14th) days of April 1869, at the office of clerk of the Carter County court, in Grayson, in Carter County, Kentucky, proceed to examine and take the testimony of E.P. Davis, William Bowling, Thomas Horton, Benjamin Shepherd, John T. Shepherd, George W. Crawford, William Steele, and George Underwood, of Carter County, Kentucky, and John M. Burns, of Boyd County, Kentucky, which examination and testimony will be taken before Henderson, judge of the Carter County court, a notary public, or some other person duly authorized by law to take depositions. And, on the twentieth, (20th,) twenty-first, (21st,) and twenty-second (22d) days of April 1869, at the office of clerk of the Rowan County court, in Morehead, in Rowan County, Kentucky, proceed to examine and take the testimony of John E. Clark, John Hargis, J.M. Lewis, and Barnebas Heyden, of Rowan County, Kentucky, which examination and testimony will be taken before Roe, judge of the Rowan County court, a notary public, or some other person duly authorized by law to take depositions. And, on the twenty-eighth (28th) and twenty-ninth (29th) days of April 1869, at the office of clerk of the Magoffin County court, in Salyersville, in Magoffin County, Kentucky, proceed to examine and take the testimony of R. Patrick, S. Adams, William Adams, Wiley Coffey, and J. Gardner, of Magoffin County, Kentucky, which examination and testimony will be taken before Archie Cooper, judge of the Magoffin County court, a notary public, or some other person duly authorized by law to take depositions. And, on fifth, (5th,) sixth, (6th,) and seventh (7th) days of May 1869, at the office of clerk of the Morgan County court, in West Liberty, in Morgan County, Kentucky, proceed to examine and take the testimony of J. Gordon, Wesly Cox, Jack Spradlin, and James Morgan, of Morgan County, Kentucky, which examination and testimony will be taken before William Myneer, judge of the Morgan County court, a notary public, or some other person duly authorized by law to take depositions. And, on the thirteenth, (13th,) fourteenth, (14th,) and fifteenth (15th) days of May 1869, at the office of clerk of the Fleming County court, in Flemingsburg, in Fleming County, Kentucky, proceed to examine and take the testimony of L.L. Warder, George Hanners, William Fleming, J.A.H. Keerans, James A. Lawson, T.S. Bell, and Isaac Kelly, of Fleming County, Kentucky, which examination and testimony will be taken before judge of the Fleming County court, a notary public, or some other person duly authorized by law to take depositions. Which testimony is to be used by me as evidence before House of Representatives of the Congress of the United States, in the contest between yourself and myself for a seat as representative from the ninth (9th) congressional district of Kentucky, in the forty-first (41st) Congress of the United States, and if not completed on said days, shall adjourn from day to day until completed. Respectfully, Hon. JOHN M. RICE, Louisa, Kentucky. JOHN L. ZEIGLER. Depositions.

The deposition of Reuben Patrick, taken on the 28th of April 1869, at the county court clerk’s office, in Salyerville, Magoffin County, Kentucky, to be read as evidence before the House of Representatives of the forty-first Congress of the United States, on the trial of the contested election of John L. Zeigler against John M. Rice, in contest for a seat as a representative from the ninth congressional district of Kentucky.

The deposition of REUBEN PATRICK, a witness of lawful age, and first duly sworn:

Question. Mr. Patrick, were you present at the courthouse in Salyerville, Magoffin County, Kentucky, in the month of October 1868, and hear J.L. Zeigler address the people of said county, while he and John M. Rice were candidates for a seat in the House of Representatives in the forty-first Congress of the United States?

Answer. I was present.

By same: Q. Did John L. Zeigler in that address give public notice that said John M. Rice was disqualified to hold the office for which he was then a candidate under the fourteenth amendment to the Constitution of the United States, and because said Rice had aided the late rebellion? State what he said about the disqualification of Rice.

A. In that address he gave public notice to the people that John M. Rice was disqualified to hold a seat in Congress because he had aided the late rebellion.

By same: Q. Are you acquainted with Martin Thornbury; if yea, how long have you known him, and what were your opportunities to know him?

A. I became acquainted with him in 1863. I became acquainted with him while he was in the army, and was frequently with him while he was in the service, and I scouted for the brigade to which he belonged. By same: Q. What is his general character for truth and veracity?

A. I never heard it questioned until this contest began, and I always regarded it good; he was a major in the United States army, and a good soldier. And further this deponent sayeth not. REUBEN PATRICK.

Also, the deposition of SMITH ADAMS, taken at the same time and place, and for the purpose mentioned in the caption, the witness of lawful age, and first duly sworn:

Question. Mr. Adams, were you present when John L. Zeigler addressed the people of Magoffin County, at Salyerville, in October 1868, and while he and John M. Rice were candidates for a seat in the House of Representatives of the forty-first Congress of the United States?

A. I was present, and [ heard] the address.

Q. Did John L. Zeigler give, in that address, public notice that John M. Rice was disqualified to hold a seat in the Congress of the United States; and, if so, for what reason?

A. He said in that address that John M. Rice was disqualified to the office on account of his loyalty. There was a good deal said about Rice’s disloyalty that I do not remember.

Q. In what building did John L. Zeigler address the people

A. In the courthouse. And further this deponent saith not. S. ADAMS.

Also, the deposition of WILLIAM ADAMS, a witness of lawful age, and first duly sworn:

Question. Mr. Adams, state where you reside, also the place of residence of Reuben Patrick and S. Adams, who have given their depositions in this case.

A. We all reside in Magoffin County, State of Kentucky, and have for more than five years past.

Q. Were you present in the courthouse in Salyersville, Magoffin County, Kentucky, in the month of October 1868, when John L. Zeigler addressed the people of Magoffin County, while he and John M. Rice were candidates for Congress?

A. I was, sir.

Q. Did John L. Zeigler, in that address, give public notice to the people that John M. Rice was disqualified to hold or occupy a seat in Congress; and if so, what reason did he give?

A. Public notice was given at the time to the people by Hon. Samuel McKee or John L. Zeigler that John M. Rice was disqualified to hold a seat in Congress; upon reflection, the notice was given by J.L. Zeigler that said Rice was disqualified to hold the office. The reason he gave was, that said Rice had participated in the late rebellion. And further this deponent saith not.

Judge’s fees, $3.00; paid by J. L. Zeigler.

STATE OF KENTUCKY, County of Magoffin, ss: WM. ADAMS. A.P. COOPER, Judge Magoffin County Court. I, Archibald P. Cooper, judge of the county court of the county and State aforesaid, do hereby certify that the foregoing depositions of Reuben Patrick, Smith Adams, and William Adams, was taken before me, and was read to and subscribed by them in my presence at the time and place and in the action mentioned in the caption; the said Reuben Patrick, Smith Adams, and William Adams having been first sworn by me that the evidence they should give in the action should be the truth, the whole truth, and nothing but the truth, and their statements reduced to writing by me in their presence; the attorney for John L. Zeigler alone being present at the examination. Given under my hand as judge of Magoffin County, Kentucky, this 28th day of April, 1869. A.P. COOPER, Judge of Magoffin County Court.

Notice. CATLETTSBURG, KENTUCKY, February 3, 1869. SIR: Take notice that I will, on the twenty-fourth and twenty-fifth (24th and 25th) days of February 1869, at the office of clerk of the Lawence County court, in Louisa, in Lawrence County, Kentucky, proceed to examine and take the testimony of Rowland T. Burns, Milton Freese, George Diamond, and John F. Hackworth, of Lawrence County, Kentucky, which examination and testimony will be taken before John C. Clayton, judge of the Lawrence County court, or before some other person duly authorized by law to take depositions. And on the third (3d) day of March, 1869, at the office of clerk of the Greenup County court in Greenupsburg, in Greenup County, Kentucky, proceed to examine and take the testimony of S. Elliot, John Seaton, and Augustus C. Vandyke, of Greenup County, Kentucky, which examination and testimony will be taken before D.J. McCoy, judge of the Greenup County court, or Jeremiah Davidson, notary public. And on the ninth (9th) day of March, 1869, at the office of clerk of the Lewis County court in Vanceburg, in Lewis County, Kentucky, proceed to examine and take the testimony of Pleasant M. Stricklett and William Stricklett, of Lewis County, Kentucky, which examination and testimony will be taken before George M. Thomas, judge of the Lewis County court. And at the same place, Vanceburg, and same day, proceed to examine and take the testimony of George M. Thomas, of Lewis County, Kentucky, which examination and testimony will be taken before a notary public, justice of the peace, or some other person authorized by law to take depositions. Which testimony is to be used by me, as evidence before the House of Representatives of the Congress of the United States, in contest between yourself and myself for a seat as representative from the ninth (9th) congressional district of Kentucky in the forty-first (41st) Congress of the United States, and if not completed on said days, shall adjourn from day to day until completed. Respectfully, Hon. JOHN M. RICE, Louisa, Kentucky. JOHN L. ZEIGLER. Deposition.

The deposition of GEORGE M. THOMAS, taken at the clerk’s office of the Lewis circuit court in Vanceburg, Lewis County, Kentucky, on the 9th day of March, 1869, to be read as evidence upon the trial of the contest between John L. Zeigler and John M. Rice, for a seat as representative from the ninth (9th) congressional district of Kentucky, in the forty-first Congress of the United States.

The witness being of lawful age, and first duly sworn, deposeth and saith: That he is well acquainted with the contestants, John L. Zeigler and John M. Rice; served as member of the Kentucky legislature with Rice in 1859, 1860, and 1861; heard Zeigler speak at Quincy, Vanceburg, and Tolesborough, in this county, in October last, when he was a candidate for Congress in opposition to Mr. Rice in this congressional district to the forty-first Congress. At each point Colonel Zeigler stated that Mr. Rice was not eligible to a seat in Congress, and assigned as a reason that said Rice had voted against raising the United States flag over the capitol at Frankfort while he was a member of the Kentucky legislature in 1861, and had voted for the Ewing resolutions while a member, and also had given aid and comfort to the rebels in the late civil war. The appointments were duly advertised, and good crowds were in attendance at each point. Hon. Samuel McKee also spoke at each place at the same time; I was an elector upon the Grant and Colfax ticket in this congressional district, and spoke at each of the appointments above mentioned. And further he saith not. STATE OF KENTUCKY, County of Lewis, 88: GEORGE M. THOMAS.

I, Thomas D. Parker, notary public in and for the county of Lewis and State of Kentucky, do certify that the foregoing deposition of George M. Thomas was taken before me, and was read to and subscribed by him in my presence, at the time and place and in the contest mentioned in the caption; the said Thomas having been first sworn by me that the evidence he should give in the action should be the truth, the whole truth, and nothing but the truth, and his statements reduced to writing by the witness in my presence, neither party in person or by attorney being present at the examination. Given under my hand and official seal this March 9th, 1869. [SEAL.] THOS. D. PARKER, Notary Public.

Notary fee $2.

Notice. CATLETTSBURG, KENTUCKY, January 27, 1869. Hon. JOHN M. RICE: Take notice that I will, on the eighth (8th) day of February, 1869, at the office of clerk of the Pike County court in Pikeville, in Pike County, Kentucky, proceed to examine and take the testimony of John Dils, jr., Martin Thornsbury, Lewis Sowards, and Lewis Dils, of Pike County, Kentucky, which examination and testimony will be taken before William Weddington, judge of the Pike County court. And on the thirteenth (13th) day of February, 1869, at the office of clerk of the Floyd County court, in Prestonsburg, in Floyd County, Kentucky, proceed to examine and take the testimony of William H. Fitzpatrick, John Harkins, Robert S. Huey, James Hereford, jr., and Thomas Collinsworth, of Floyd County, Kentucky, which examination and testimony will be taken before James P. Harris, judge of the Floyd County court. And on the eighteenth (18th) day of February, 1869, at the office of clerk of the Boyd County court in Catlettsburg, in Boyd County, Kentucky, proceed to examine and take the testimony of Benjamin Burk, Laban T. Moore, John M. Burns, William Sloan, Alexander Smiley, and Colbert Cecil, jr., of Boyd County, Kentucky, and John Pigg, of Louisa, Lawrence County, Kentucky, which examination and testimony will be taken before Joseph Patton, judge of the Boyd County court; which testimony is to be used by me, as evidence before the House of Representatives of the Congress of the United States, in the contest between yourself and myself for a seat as representative from the ninth (9th) congressional district of Kentucky in the forty-first (41st) Congress of the United States, and if not completed on said days, shall adjourn from day to day until completed. Respectfully, JOHN L. ZEIGLER. Depositions.

The depositions of BENJAMIN BURKS, taken on the 20th day of February, 1869, at the clerk’s office of the Boyd circuit court, at Catlettsburg, Ky., to be read as evidence in a contest for seat in the forty-first Congress of the United States from the ninth congressional district, within the State of Kentucky, between John L. Zeigler, contestant, and John M. Rice, contestee. It is agreed between the undersigned that the time of notice, fixing the 18th instant, should be changed to this day, the 20th, and waive hereby any objection to date in notice, and the party before whom taken. J. L. ZEIGLER. JOHN M. RICE.

Question by counsel for contestant: Mr. Burk, are you acquainted with John M. Rice, esq., and were you acquainted with him in the years 1861 and 1862?

Answer. I am acquainted with John M. Rice, esq., and was so acquainted with him in the years 1861 and 1862.

By same: Q. Where did Mr. Rice live in the years 1862 and 1863?

A. At Louisa, Kentucky.

By same: Q. What is Mr. Rice’s profession or vocation in life?

A. It is that of a lawyer.

By same: Q. Where was Mr. Rice in the years 1861 and 1862, and what was he engaged in?

A. I think he was in the legislature in 1861 or 1862, and he may have been in the legislature a part of each of said years. I do not know what he was engaged in outside of the legislature.

By same: Q. Where was he in the year 1863, and what was he doing in that year?

A. I cannot answer.

By same: Q. Were you ever present when the contestant informed the voters of the ninth congressional district of the ineligibility of Mr. Rice under the fourteenth constitutional amendment; and if so, where was the notice given? State all you know about it.

A. I was at the courthouse in Catlettsburg, Kentucky, when Hon. Samuel McKee spoke there. I heard John L. Zeigler say that Mr. Rice was ineligible as a congressman under the fourteenth constitutional amendment, on that day, which was before the election. Colonel Zeigler made some remarks to the audience who was in the courthouse at the time, that Rice was ineligible under the constitutional amendment aforesaid; and he also said if Rice was elected that he could not take his seat.

Cross-examined:

Question by contestee’s counsel: You will state how long you have been acquainted with Mr. John M. Rice.

Answer. I have been acquainted with John M. Rice ever since he was a small boy.

By same: Q. Do you have any knowledge of Mr. John M. Rice doing a disloyal act during the war, or any act that would disqualify him, under the fourteenth article of the Constitution, from taking his seat as a member of Congress?

A. I do not.

By same: Q. Were you present in the town of Catlettsburg, Kentucky, a short time before the election in November last for congressmen in Kentucky, when Colonel John L. Zeigler declared himself a candidate for the forty-first Congress; if so, was not that the time he spoke of John M. Rice’s disqualification under the fourteenth article, referred to by you in examination-in-chief?

A. That was the time.

By same: Q. Did not the colonel then ask the people to vote for him; that he was the man; that he would be your representative?

A. At that time Colonel Zeigler asked the people to vote for him.

By same: Q. By what authority did Colonel Zeigler declare and give notice to the people that John M. Rice was disqualified? Did he read any proof or use any witnesses? Did he declare it on his own knowledge? If so, state how he knew it, if he stated he was present and knew of any of his disloyal acts. And did he speak of any disloyal act that he had done that he, John L. Zeigler, knew himself to be true? If so, state it.

A. I do not know by what authority Colonel Zeigler declared and gave notice to the people that John M. Rice was disqualified. He did not use any papers or witnesses at the time. Zeigler declared it, but I do not know that he declared it on his own knowledge or not. I did not hear Colonel Zeigler speak of any disloyal act that Rice done.

By same: Q. You will now state if Colonel John L. Zeigler has not stated and told you that in his canvass for the forty-first Congress he did not go into the counties of Pike, Floyd, Powell, Montgomery, Morgan, and Mason, which counties composed a part of the ninth congressional district of Kentucky. And did he this day deny that he was not in either of those counties during his canvass, when charged that he had not been in either; and he asserted, by way of reply, that he had been in a majority of the counties of the ninth district? State what he said.

A. Colonel Zeigler told me there was some of the counties that he was not in, but I do not recollect the names of the counties. I do not recollect of Zeigler saying anything about it today.

By same: Q. From the time Colonel Zeigler became a candidate, was it not impossible for him to canvass the whole district?

A. From the time that Colonel Zeigler became a candidate I think it was impossible for him to have visited the whole district. B. BURK.

Also, the deposition of JOHN PIGG, taken at the same time and place, and for the same purpose that is mentioned in the caption. He being of lawful age and first duly sworn, deposeth and saith:

Question by attorney for Zeigler:

Where do you reside and what is your occupation?

Answer. I reside at Louisa, Kentucky; my occupation is that of blacksmith.

By same: Q. Are you acquainted with John M. Rice, esq., and how long have you known him?

A. I am acquainted with John M. Rice, and have known him about twenty years.

By same: Q. Where was he in the year 1861?

A. A portion of year he was about Louisa, Kentucky. He moved to Louisa, Kentucky, in the spring of 1861, and the greater portion of the time he was there.

By same: Q. Was Mr. Rice in Virginia in the year 1861; and, if so, what time in that year was it that he was there?

A. I do not recollect.

By same: Q. Was Mr. Rice ever at Prestonsburg, Kentucky, when General Humphrey Marshall was there in command of rebel troops?

A. He started from Louisa, Kentucky, and said he was going there.

By same: Q. What did he say he was going there for?

A. He said that he was going there with the expectation of getting the place of captain or lieutenant.

By same: Q. Was the command of captain or lieutenant, which Mr. Rice then wanted, to be of rebel or federal troops?

A. I think it was rebel.

By same: Q. Did Mr. Rice ever speak to you about weapons of warfare in the year 1861-62; and if so, in what service were they to be used?

A. He spoke to me to make him a saber; that he was going to Prestonsburg, Ky.

By same: Q. Did Mr. Rice have a cartouch-box and pistol-case made before he left Louisa for Prestonsburg, Ky., and by whom were they made, and for what purpose? Tell all you know about this.

A. He had a cartouch-box and pistol-case made before he left Louisa, Ky. They were made by John Keller. This was before he left for Prestonsburg. I suppose they were made for war purposes, but I did not hear Mr. Rice say that he was going to use them for that purpose.

By same: Q. What did Mr. Rice want the saber for which he applied to you to make for him, and why did you decline to make it?

A. He applied to me to make him a saber, but he did not tell me what he was going to use it for. I declined to make it because it did not suit my principles.

By same: Q. What were your principles that forbade you making the saber?

A. I was for the Union.

By same: Q. You will please state anything you heard Mr. Rice say during the late rebellion of a disloyal character.

A. When Mr. Rice was on his way to Frankfort, in the presence of Judge Short and wife, and myself, at Louisa, Ky., when he (Rice) was waiting for a boat, he said that he was going to Frankfort to divide this Union. That he intended to split her wide open in the middle. That was his vote every time.

By same: Q. Were you at Louisa before the late congressional election in this (ninth) district. when the contestant (Zeigler) made a speech; and if so, did he publish to the voters that John M. Rice was disfranchised by reason of the fourteenth constitutional amendment?

A. I was present at Louisa, Ky., when Zeigler made a speech, before the congressional election; in which speech Zeigler said that if Rice was elected he (Rice) could not take his seat, and reason he could not take his seat; that he (Zeigler) knew it.

By same: Q. Did the contestant (Zeigler) tell the voters of Lawrence, at Louisa, that Mr. Rice could not take seat because of his disloyal acts?

A. Zeigler did not say anything about Rice’s disloyal acts, but said that Rice could not take his seat, and he (Zeigler) knew it.

Cross-examined by contestee’s counsel:

Q. You will state, if you know, what was Mr. John M. Rice’s business to Frankfort: or, if stated by him in the conversation you have referred to in the presence of Judge Short and wife, and in which he said he was going for splitting the Union in the middle?

A. He (Rice) said that he was on his way to the legislature.

By same: Q. Was he a member, or elected to the legislature that was then about to assemble; if so, what district was he the representative of?

A. It was my understanding that he (Rice) was a member from Pike County.

By same: Q. Did you get your knowledge of his being a member of the legislature from the conversation alluded to with him?

A. From that, and from what I understood from others.

By same: Q. Now you will please state the month and year this conversation took place?

A. I think it was in the fall of 1860.

By same: Q. In the conversation alluded to by you about Rice’s going in for the splitting of the Union in the middle, did not Rice jocularly speak also about the effort of Tennessee, Indiana, Ohio, and Kentucky undertaking to save the Union, and got on a big drunk, and he was now going in for splitting the Union in the middle?

A. Not as I heard.

By same: Q. Was not this a jocular conversation, and before the secession of any of the States?

A. I do not know that it was. I thought he was positive about it. I do not recollect whether any of the States had seceded or not.

By same: Q. Do you know when the first State did secede?

A. I do not.

By same: Q. Did this conversation occur before John M. Rice moved to Louisa?

A. It did.

By same: Q. You have stated a conversation you had about Rice’s wanting you to make a saber and Keller a cartridge-box; was not this about the time the State guards was forming in Louisa, and they were uniforming themselves?

A. I do not think it was.

By same: Q. What time did that conversation occur? Give the month, place, and year as near as you can?

A. It took place in Louisa, Kentucky, in the last of 1861, or the summer of 1862, which time I am not positive. It was the time Marshall was recruiting at Prestonsburg.

By same: Q. Do you know, of your own knowledge, that Marshall did recruit at Prestonsburg?

A. I do not know that Marshall was recruiting, of my own knowledge, but I only knew Marshall was recruiting from the rumor of the country.

By same: Q. Have you any feeling or particular interest in this case further than to answer such questions as are legally asked you? If so, state what it is.

A. I have none.

By same: Q. Was this conversation you had with Rice about the saber before the organization of the Fourteenth Kentucky federal infantry or after?

A. I think it was before.

By same: Q. You have said the conversation occurred in the last of the year 1861, or summer of 1862. If you recollect as to the season of the year more certain than the year, you give the season; and also state how long this conversation was before Rice started in the direction of Prestonsburg, and you will also state if Rice ever took more than one trip toward Prestonsburg after the said time during the war?

A. It was in warm weather, either in the latter part of the summer, or fore part of the fall. The conversation took place a short time before Rice started in the direction of Prestonsburg. He only took one trip toward Prestonsburg to my knowledge.

By same: Q. Did not Rice leave Louisa and go in the direction of Prestonsburg after a part of the Fifth Virginia federal forces had been stationed at Cassville, Virginia, opposite Louisa?

A. I do not know.

By same: Q. Was it before or after the Fifth Virginia was stationed at Cassville, Virginia?

A. I do not recollect.

By same: Q. After John M. Rice returned to Louisa, is it a fact, or not, that he remained at Louisa, at home, during the war, and while Louisa was the headquarters for General White, Colonel Gallup, and others, and was not Louisa continued from 1862 to the close of the war to be held by federal troops?

A. After John M. Rice returned home to Louisa, Kentucky, he remained there during the war. Louisa, Kentucky, continued to be occupied by federal troops from 1862, or 1863, until the close of the war, with the exception of a short time when Colonel Cranor left there.

By same: Q. You will state if you resided in Louisa during the war and after John M. Rice returned, stated by you, to Louisa, when the Sixty-eighth regiment of enrolled militia of Lawrence County was called into active service in aid of the federal forces in Eastern Kentucky; if so, you will state if John M. Rice did not belong to said regiment and do active service. If an officer, state in what capacity he acted.

A. I lived at Louisa, Kentucky, during the war. John M. Rice was in Louisa, Kentucky, when the Sixty- eighth Regiment enrolled militia was called into service, and he was there with the Sixty-eighth Regiment of militia, and he, the said Rice, was recognized as quartermaster of said regiment by the regiment.

By same: Q. Did or not said Sixty-eighth Regiment add and give very material aid to the federal forces then in need of help on the Sandy River during the time of their organization?

A. They did. There was a great many hardships put on said regiment.

By same: Q. What has become of John Keller, the man you have spoken of that made the cartridge-box for Rice?

A. He is dead.

By same: Q. Who was present at the time you had the conversation with Rice, detailed by you, in which Rice asked you to make a saber? if any person, state who. You will also state if you was not well known and recognized by all persons from the commencement of the difficulties as a strong Union man, dead down against rebels and sympathizers.

A. I think John Keller, William Stephson, John M. Rice, and myself was the only persons who presence at the conversation. When the same took place, Stephson was a saddler in the shop of Keller. I was a strong Union man during the war, down on rebels and rebel sympathizers.

By same: Q. Is it not a fact that about the commencement of the war there was a malignant feeling existing between Union men in Kentucky and southern sympathizers, and this feeling particular about Louisa, that prudence required the weaker party to leave; that arrests had been made of those regarded as southern men about Catlettsburg, and threatened about Louisa by the federal forces? (“The contestant by his attorney objected to this question” as incompetent. J.D. JONES, N.P.B.C.)

A. There was some hard feelings existing between the Union men and rebels and rebel sympathizers in Kentucky when the war broke out. It was no more so about Louisa, Kentucky, than other places in Kentucky. I suppose it was a general feeling. I do not know that prudence required the weaker party to leave, but a good many persons did leave. There was some men arrested who lived at Catlettsburg, Kentucky, who were brought to Louisa, Kentucky, and put into jail. I think there were persons who resided at Louisa, Kentucky, threatened of being arrested, to some extent, by the federal forces. JOHN PIGG.

L.T. MOORE: deposition taken at the same time and place, and for the same purpose as mentioned in the caption.

Examined by attorney of Zeigler:

Question. Where did Mr. John M. Rice live in the years 1861 and 1862?

Answer. I think that Rice resided in Louisa, Kentucky.

By same: Q. Was Mr. Rice at at the time General Humphrey Marshall, of the rebel army, was recruiting there, in the early part of the war?

A. I do not know.

By same: Q. Was Mr. John M. Rice within the rebel lines at any time in the years 1861 and 1862, or was he at any time captured by federal troops in either 1861 or 1862, or at any other time during the war?

A. Of my own personal knowledge, I know nothing about John M. Rice being in the confederate line at any time. I do not know of John M. Rice being captured by the federal forces, of my own knowledge, but I saw him a prisoner at one time in the federal camp.

By same: Q. Where did you see Mr. Rice a prisoner, whose command held him as a prisoner, and where had that command been on active service immediately next before you saw Mr. Rice a prisoner, and at what time was Mr. Rice a prisoner, and where was the command of Humphrey Marshall at the time you saw Mr. Rice a prisoner?

A. I saw John M. Rice a prisoner at Louisa, Kentucky. My recollection is that Colonel Cranor was in command at Louisa, Kentucky, at the time. Immediately before that time, Cranor had been in actual service up the Sandy Valley. Mr. Rice was a prisoner sometime in the spring or summer of 1862. I do not know where the command of Marshall was at that time.

By same: Q. What charges was Mr. Rice held under at the time he was a prisoner?

A. My recollection is that some Union men in Morgan County had been arrested, and among them a man by the name of Gordon. Rice and some others were arrested as hostages by the federal forces for these men.

By same: Q. Where was Mr. Rice at the time the federal forces drove Marshall before them out of the Sandy Valley?

A. I do not know.

By same: Q. Was Mr. Rice at Louisa, his home, at the time of the fight at Ivy Creek, in 1861?

A. I do not know. I was not at Louisa, Kentucky, at that time.

By same: Q. Did Mr. Rice, at any time, tell you he was in Arlington, Virginia, either in the year 1862 or 1863; and, if so, what did he say was the object of his mission there?

A. I do not remember that Rice ever told me that he was in Arlington, Virginia.

By same: Q. Did Mr. Rice ever tell you at any time that he was at any time during the war with the rebels, or that he gave any aid or comfort to the rebels, or do you, of your own knowledge, or from other sources, know of his aiding the rebels in arms? Tell all you know about it.

A. Since this contest has commenced, I had a conversation with Mr. Rice, in the city of Frankfort, Kentucky. Rice told me in said conversation that he had gone to the town of Piketon, Kentucky, to collect some money in the fall of 1861; that he intended to return home from there. I think he said that he had got as far as Prestonsburg, on his way home. He was there intercepted by a letter from his wife, carried by his sister Miss Amanda Rice, advising him that his father and some others of his friends had been arrested, and he must not come home; that he remained up there for a time, and then went to Virginia. Rice said, in that conversation, that he had refused to take any commission in the rebel army. I know nothing, of my personal knowledge, of Mr. Rice giving aid or comfort to the rebels.

By same: Q. How long was Mr. Rice absent from Louisia (his home) at the time he was in Virginia?

A. I did not see Mr. Rice at Louisa, Kentucky, from the fall of 1861 until the spring of 1862; I was absent from Louisa, Kentucky, in January and part of February 1862.

Cross-examined:

Question by counsel for contestee: You will state if it is not true that at the time John Rice was a prisoner as a hostage at Louisa, as you have spoken, he was taken at home and allowed the town boundary on honor?

Answer. He was arrested at home, Louisa, Kentucky, and was on his parole.

By same: Q. What was your occupation in 1861, fall and spring of 1862?

A. In the fall of 1861 I was engaged in raising the Fourteenth Kentucky regiment, and commanded said regiment until sometime in 1862, which regiment was the Fourteenth Kentucky federal regiment.

By same: Q. What was John M. Rice’s occupation prior to the spring of 1861, and residence for some years before that date?

A. He was practicing law in Pike County, Kentucky, and resided at Pikeville until the spring of 1861. Before Rice came to Louisa, Kentucky, in 1861, I do not think he practiced law in Lawrence County.

By same: Q. Colonel Moore, you will please state the feeling of Union men towards southern sympathizers in this section of the country about the beginning of the war, and is it not true that about the time of John M. Rice’s alarm from home you have spoken of, his father and other friends had been arrested, and was unsafe for a southern man to remain at home?

A. At the commencement of the war in this country there was considerable bitterness entertained by both parties towards each other. In September, in 1861, Judge Rice, the father of John M. Rice, and some other of his friends who were regarded as southern sympathizers, was arrested. It was not safe at that time in this country for persons of known or suspected sympathy with the South to remain at home. I mean that such persons would have been arrested.

Re-examined:

Question by counsel for contestant: Was Mr. Rice (John M.) regarded and held as a southern man or sympathizer during the early part of the late war, in 1861 and 1862?

A. He was so regarded in this country.

STATE OF KENTUCKY, Boyd County: LABAN T. MOORE. I, J.D. Jones, notary public in and for the county and State aforesaid, do certify that the foregoing depositions of Benjamin Burk, John Pigg, and L.T. Moore, taken before me, were read to and subscribed by them in my presence at the time and place, and in the action mentioned in the caption. The said Benjamin Burk, John Pigg, and L.T. Moore, having been first duly sworn by me, the evidence that they should give in the action should be the whole truth and nothing but the truth, and their statements reduced to writing by me in their presence. The contestant, John L. Zeigler, and his attorney, D.S. Hounshall, esq., and the contestee, John M. Rice, and his attorney, G.W. Brown, esq., all being present at the examination. Given under my hand and seal this the 20th day of February, 1869. [SEAL] J.D. JONES, Notary Public for Boyd County, Kentucky.

NOTARY PUBLIC FEES. To taking three depositions, $1 each ……. Paid by Zeigler. $3. J.D. JONES, N.P.B.C. LOUISA, KENTUCKY.

NOTICE. Hon. John M. Rice: You will take notice that I will, on the fifteenth, sixteenth, and seventeenth (15th, 16th, and 17th) days of March, 1869, at the storehouse of Dils & Thornbury, in Piketon, Pike County, Kentucky, proceed to examine and take the testimony of John Dils, jr., Martin Thornbury, Richard P. Robinson, and James Weddington, esqs., of Pike County, Kentucky, which examination and testimony will be taken before William Weddington, judge of the Pike County court, or John Hoskins, a notary public of Floyd County, Kentucky, which testimony is to be used by me as evidence before the House of Representatives of the Congress of the United States in contest between yourself and myself for a seat as representative from the ninth (9th) congressional district of Kentucky in the forty-first (41st) Congress of the United States, and if not completed on said days, shall adjourn from day to day until completed. FEBRUARY 8, 1869. JOHN L. ZEIGLER.

Executed by delivering a true copy of the within notice to Mrs. Sarah Rice, wife of John M. Rice, at his usual place of abode, the said John M. Rice not found in my county, this 11th day of February, 1869. STATE OF KENTUCKY, Lawrence County: G.F. JOHNSON, Sheriff Lawrence County. I, R.F. Vinson, clerk of the county court within and for the county and State aforesaid, do hereby certify that George F. Johnson, by whom this notice was executed, is sheriff of Lawrence County, duly qualified and sworn, and that all his acts as such are entitled to full faith and credit. That the said Johnson was at the time of executing said notice sheriff as aforesaid, and that the above is his genuine signature. Witness my hand and seal of office on this the 11th day of February, A.D. 1869, R.F. VINSON, [Copy.] C.L.C.C.C.

Depositions. The deposition of JOHN DILS, jr., taken on the 15th of March, 1869, at the storehouse of Dils & Thornbury, in Piketon, Pike County, Kentucky, to be read as evidence on the trial of the contest of John L. Zeigler against John M. Rice for a seat as representative from the ninth congressional district of Kentucky in the forty-first Congress of the United States.

The deposition of Colonel John Dils, jr., a witness of lawful age, and first duly sworn and examined by John L. Zeigler by counsel:

Question. State your age, place of residence, and occupation; are you acquainted with the Hon. John M. Rice, representative elect from the ninth congressional district of Kentucky to the forty-first Congress of the United States; if yea, how long have you known him?

Answer. My age is about forty-eight years; my residence, Pikeville, Pike County, Kentucky-has been the most of the time for about thirty years. My occupation, merchandizing, &c. I have been acquainted with Mr. J.M. Rice for fifteen years or more.

By same: Q. State if you saw John M. Rice, member elect to the forty-first Congress of the United States, in the town of Piketon, Pike County, Kentucky, in the months of October or November, 1861. Was the town then occupied by the rebel forces, and if so, who was their commander?

A. I saw Mr. J.M. Rice, the member elect alluded to, in the town of Pikeville, Kentucky, in the month of October 1861, and Colonel John S. Williams, of the confederate forces, was then in command and possession of the said place with his command.

By same: Q. State as near as you can how long he remained in the town of Piketon in October 1861, while the confederate forces occupied the town.

A. About one week that I know of. I was taken a prisoner and taken to Richmond, Virginia, and left the forces in Pikeville.

By same: Q. Was the Hon. John M. Rice, representative elect from the ninth congressional district of Kentucky to the forty-first Congress of the United States, armed when in Piketon, Pike County, Kentucky, in October 1861, and while the town was occupied by the rebel forces? Did he, in the month of October 1861, buy a gun? If so, for what purpose did he say he bought the gun? Did he name the gun? If so, what did he call it?

A. I saw John M. Rice with a side-arm, I think a pistol, at that time. I do not recollect distinctly seeing him with a gun at that time. I sold Mr. Rice a rifle gun in the month of May, I think, 1861. Mr. Rice spoke of it to me afterward of being well pleased with the gun, and called it his Yankee killer.

By same: Q. State if you have any knowledge that the Hon. John M. Rice was in any way connected with the rebel army, either in the years 1861 or 1862; if so, state all you know about his connection with the army, and how you derived your information. Did he have any office in the army?

A. All I know of Mr. Rice holding any position, or acting with the confederate army, is from what he told me himself. Mr. Rice told me, in the year 1862, after I had went his bail in a bond at Louisville, Kentucky, for his appearance before United States court, that he was very lucky when he was captured by the Union forces near Hatcher’s, Floyd County, Kentucky; for if the boys had searched him they would have found his commission and recruiting papers; but they did not do so, and he destroyed them the first opportunity he got. He also said, if General Garfield had got those papers, he was satisfied he would have been sent off to some prison.

By same: Q. How many different conversations did you have with him in reference to his having recruiting papers for the confederate army, and how long after he had been released from arrest by General Garfield?

A. We had several; they were at different times and places; could not state accurately the number; the first was in August 1862, or September.

By same: Q. Is it or not a fact that the Hon. John M. Rice, representative elect from the ninth congressional district of Kentucky, to the forty-first Congress of the United States, in the year 1861 was a man of influence, and at that time was an open advocate to the southern confederacy and the then existing rebellion against the United States?

A. Mr. John M. Rice was a man of prominence then and now, and a warm advocate of the southern cause in the years 1861 and 1862.

By same: Q. State if you know that the Hon. John M. Rice had any correspondence with the rebel authorities at Richmond, Virginia, in the year 1861.

A. There was a letter read in my behalf, by Judge Braxton, I think, written by Mr. Rice, which I knew nothing of until I was brought before the judge out of Libby prison, in Richmond, Va., for trial or examination.

Cross-examination by John M. Rice’s counsel:

Q. What was the purport of the letter, and the object spoken of?

A. The purport of the letter was stating the facts about my arrest that caused me to be sent to prison by Colonel Williams, and the object was to have justice done me in the matter, so that I might be released.

By same: Q. Was it not a warm advocacy for your release from the terrible prison Libby; and was not the same carried there by your wife, and had it not the desired object?

A. I do not know how the letter came to Richmond-whether my wife brought it or whom; my wife was there, and Judge Braxton seemed to pay a great deal to the purport of Mr. Rice’s letter; the letter advocated warmly in favor of my release.

By same: Q. What was you arrested for and imprisoned in Libby; was it not for your known opposition to the confederacy and a Union man; and had you not taken warm part in the Union cause at the time of arrest, and your position well known?

A. I do not know for what particular cause of my arrest; I know that I was at that time and now a warm friend and advocate of the Union. Col. Williams wrote to Judge Braxton that I was a dangerous Union man, the most dangerous and influential he found in the mountains of Kentucky.

By same: Q. You will state if you have knowledge yourself of John M. Rice doing an act that gave aid and comfort to the rebellion; if so, state what it was.

A. I know of no particular act of John M. Rice in giving aid or comfort to the confederate forces only as to what I have stated before.

By same: Q. Do you know of his recruiting for the confederate service, or attempting to do; and did he say, in the conversation alluded to, that he ever had recruited? State what grade of commission did he say he had.

A. I do not know of Mr. Rice recruiting any man at all. My recollection in the conversation with Mr. Rice about his recruiting papers is, that he was then on his way for recruiting a company of men, which, I presumed, was a captaincy.

By same: Q. Is it not a fact that John M. Rice had resided in this town, Pikeville, and the place you have spoken of that Colonel Williams and command was at at the time you was arrested; from about the years 1853 or 1854 to the spring of 1861 was a practicing lawyer in Pike County, and had been during his residence there; his business was in this county, (Pike); had he not come to Pikeville some time before Williams and his command came there ? You will state if you saw any act of John M. Rice assisting the rebels while they were in Pikeville; if so, state what you saw him do.

A. Mr. Rice resided in Pikeville, Kentucky, some years before 1861; was, at all the time of his residence in said town, a practicing lawyer. Mr. Rice has had, ever since, more or less business in said town. I think Mr. Rice came to Pikeville once or twice before the command of Colonel Williams came from Prestonsburg, Kentucky, to Pikesville. I do not recollect of seeing any act of Mr. Rice with the army of Colonel Williams’s command at any time, or any other forces that I recollect of.

By same: Q. Is it not a fact that you and John M. Rice was on the best of terms, and jocularly talked over your troubles of the war and adventures in a free, jocularly way, and laughed over them freely?

A. Mr. Rice and myself have always been on the best of terms, and especially at the time alluded to. We were very friendly and jocular. We both talked freely over our troubles in the war.

By same: Q. You have spoken of John M. Rice buying a rifle gun of you in the spring of 1861, in Pikeville; did he not trade you some notes in a settlement in buying the gun, and did not the conversation occur in the presence of several that it was his Yankee killer, in a jocular way, and at a time before any war or hostilities in this country; and did you ever see him with the gun afterwards; if so, was it in any kind of array of hostility or practicing with same?

A. At the time Mr. Rice bought the rifle gun of me, he traded me some notes and papers on other parties, at the time spoken of, calling the gun a Yankee killer sometime after he bought it of me; but he might have spoken the same way at the time he bought the gun. I think, when he spoke of the gun being a good Yankee, he laughed at me at the time, but still I thought he was in earnest when he spoke against the Yankees. I would not be positive as to ever seeing Mr. Rice with the gun spoken of. At the time Mr. Rice bought the gun of me, there was no hostile forces in this section of Kentucky, nor not expected at the time.

By same: Q. Is it not a fact that, in the fall of 1861, there was a great deal of excitement, and the people was in great commotion, the Union men running north to the Ohio River, and southern men making their way toward Virginia, not knowing what they were doing, and men that had really done nothing; and was not the most outrageous tales in circulation in this country as to the acts of parties to each other?

A. At the time alluded to there was a great excitement in this section of Kentucky, and men were continually passing each way, some to Ohio and others to Virginia. Men were passing each way that had no connection with any army whatever, that were old and harmless; and there were a great many exciting stories afloat.

By same: Q. At the time John M. Rice came to Pikeville, in fall of 1861, had Humphrey Marshall came into Kentucky, the Sandy Valley, with a command, recruiting, or any other way, or at Prestonsburg; and did he go to Prestonsburg until several months after Rice came to Pikeville?

A. Humphrey Marshall came into Kentucky in the month, I think, of December, 1861. Mr. John M. Rice came to Pikeville at and before Colonel Williams’s command was routed by General Nelson’s forces, in October 1861.

By same: Q. You have stated that John M. Rice was, in 1861, a man of influence, and still is. Is it not a fact, if he had added his aid and influence to the confederacy, that it would have been known and easily proven in this country?

A. If Mr. Rice had taken any decided hostile position, such as to get men to go into the army and fight, &c., it would have been known, for he could have commanded an influence at any time.

By same: Q. Was you not colonel of the Thirty-ninth Kentucky volunteer regiment of infantry, federal, and recruited said regiment?

A. I recruited and command the Thirty-ninth regiment.

By same: Q. Is it not a known fact among the federal soldiers that John M. Rice was in the federal service; that he was quartermaster of the Sixty-eighth regiment of enrolled militia of Lawrence County, which was called into the service of the federal government in the Sandy Valley in the aid of the said forces; and that that regiment did effective service?

A. I heard it frequently said that Mr. Rice acted as quartermaster of the Sixty-eighth regiment enrolled militia, (I refer to the Adjutant General’s Report); I saw some of said regiment engaged in government service, such as assisting transporting provisions, &c., up Sandy.

By same: Q. You have said that John M. Rice was a warm advocate of the southern cause; did you mean by that he was opposed to the war? And in his conversation, did you ever hear him publicly advocate the cause, and advise men to join the service of the confederacy at any time? If so, state when and where, and what he said, and who was present, after the war was declared.

A. I do not recollect of ever hearing Mr. Rice trying to influence any one to join the confederate forces, but Mr. Rice was a warm advocate of their cause; when talking on the subject of the war, he always spoke in their favor, except as to the guerillas; he was down on them. I do not recollect of any particular person or persons being present at any time of our frequent conversations; do not recollect of any public speeches of his or arguments about the war.

Re-examined by counsel of John L. Zeigler:

Q. Is it or not a fact the Sixty-eighth regiment of Kentucky enrolled militia was called into service by compulsory military orders; and is it or not a fact that John M. Rice, when acting in the quartermaster’s department, was at his home; how long was the regiment in service; is it or not a fact Hon. John M. Rice was arrested before he would agree to do duty in the Sixty-eighth regiment Kentucky militia?

A. I recollect there was considerable trouble in getting the men together that composed said regiment; it was called out, I think, as a reserved force, the regular forces being sent to the front. I do not know of Mr. Rice refusing to act, nor do I know that he did act as quartermaster of said regiment.

By same: Q. How long was the Sixty-eighth regiment in service; where was it stationed; where did John M. Rice then live; what kind of duty did they do?

A. I do not know how long it was in service; the regiment was only together as the exigency seemed to be demanded by those in command at Louisa. Some of the men would go and stay a week or so and return home, stating they were dismissed for a certain time. The rendezvous was at Louisa, Kentucky; Mr. Rice lived there. I saw some of the men boating or transporting provisions up Sandy.

By same: Q. In the letter you saw in Judge Baxter’s possession when you was examined in Richmond, Virginia, in 1861, and written by John M. Rice, did he or not in that letter express his devotion to the confederate cause?

A. I do not recollect of anything said in said letter about his position in the war, but Judge Braxton said he had a letter from Mr. Rice, a friend of their cause, that spoke highly of me. I did not hear all the letter read, but I saw it was in his handwriting, and Mr. Rice told me afterward he wrote a letter for my benefit to Richmond, Virginia.

By same: Q. Was the conversation with John M. Rice in August 1862, when John M. Rice told you he had destroyed his recruiting papers, a jocular one?

A. I did not so consider it; for he was speaking of how narrowly he escaped imprisonment, if the papers should have fallen into General Garfield’s hands.

By same: Q. You say John M. Rice could at any time have easily raised a company; is it or not a fact that he told you he had just come into Kentucky for the purpose of commencing the recruiting for the confederate cause, at the time of his capture?

A. Mr. Rice told me he was then on his way to General Marshall’s forces for the purpose of recruiting for the confederate cause, when captured by the Union forces.

Re- cross-examined by Rice’s counsel:

Q. Do you intend to be understood that Rice told you, at the time of his arrest, that he was then on his way to commence his recruiting, and that he was arrested before he began?

A. I understood Mr. Rice just in this language-that he was just from Virginia; had come through the Pound Gap, and had got as far as Hatcher’s, Floyd County, Kentucky, and on his way to General Marshall’s forces to recruit men. I did not hear him say that he had recruited any men at all.

By same: Q. Was Colonel John L. Zeigler in this county (Pike) during his canvass, or did you even ever hear of his being in the county; was any notice published in this county that John M. Rice was disqualified to hold office of congressman?

A. I am satisfied the colonel was not in this county, as he told me he was not, and I never saw him at the time alluded to; I never saw, to my recollection, any notice of the kind in this county alluded to. And further this deponent saith not. JOHN DILS, JR.

Adjourned until the 16th of March, 1869, this 15th of March, 1869. WM. WEDDINGTON, P.J.P.C.C. Met pursuant to adjournment on the 16th of March, 1869. P.J.P.C.C.

The deposition of RICHARD P. ROBINSON, a witness of lawful age, and first duly sworn:

Question. Mr. Robinson, state your age; place of residence, and occupation. Are you acquainted with the Hon. John M. Rice, representative from the ninth congressional district of Kentucky to the forty-first Congress of the United States; and, if yea, how long?

Answer. I am forty-one years old; I live in Pike County, Kentucky; I am by occupation a farmer. I have been acquainted with Hon. John M. Rice twelve or fifteen years.

By same: Q. Did you or not see the Hon. John M. Rice in the towns of Prestonsburg, Floyd County, Kentucky, and Piketon, Pike County, Kentucky, in the fall of 1861; and did the confederate forces occupy said towns at the time?

A. I saw him in both places: and they were knocking around and had possession or military control of the places in 1861.

By same: Q. Was John M. Rice armed when you saw him in Prestonsburg and Piketon, or in either of the places?

A. I never seen him have any arms.

By same: Q. Did you know of his aiding and assisting the rebellion in any way, or aiding or assisting those engaged in it, or counseling others to engage in it?

A. No, sir; I don’t.

By same: Q. Did you see him at any other place in the fall of 1861 than Prestonsburg or Piketon?

A. I don’t think I did; if I did, I don’t remember it.

Cross-examined by John M. Rice’s counsel:

Q. You have stated that you were well acquainted with John M. Rice. You will now state if your opportunities were not such, at the time of the rebel forces occupying the towns of Pikeville and Prestonsburg, to know of John M. Rice’s giving aid and comfort to the rebellion, if he was guilty; and if he had been armed, to have seen it?

A. I seen him and had opportunity to know if he was armed at that time; I had opportunity to know, and, if he was guilty, I did not know it.

By same: Q. Was you a rebel soldier at any time during the rebellion?

A. I was.

By same: Q. Is it not a fact that John M. Rice was censured and spoken of in a rather offensive manner by the rebel soldiers and officers for his not giving them help?

A. I don’t recollect of hearing anything spoken about him.

By same: Q. Was you not in Pikeville at the time Williams’ forces occupied said town, and at the time Colonel John Dils was arrested; if so, did you see John M. Rice; and was that the time you alluded to seeing him in Pikeville in examination-in-chief?

A. I was not in town when Colonel Dils was arrested, but this was the time referred to.

By same: Q. Did John M. Rice come with the rebel forces to Pikeville at the time alluded to or not?

A. He came before they did.

By same: Q. What was the excitement in the Sandy Valley in the fall of 1861, and winter of 1861 and 1862; was not a great stir among the people, and rumors and statements that the Union forces were coming up the Sandy, killing and imprisoning the southern men as they came; southern men were running to the South, and the Union men running to the North; many men run off that there were no charges against, some taking their families; some even that was afterward strong Union men, to wit: John M. Burns and family went South for a time and came back and went strong against the confederacy?

A. That is all the facts.

Re-examined by counsel of J. L. Zeigler:

Q. Was you a soldier at the time you saw John M. Rice in Prestonsburg and Piketon, and was you in each of those during the whole time the rebel forces occupied the towns?

A. I was not a soldier at the time I saw John M. Rice in Piketon and Prestonsburg; I was not in each of those places during the whole time the rebel forces occupied them.

By same: Q. How long were you in Prestonsburg; and how did the rebel forces occupy Prestonsburg in the fall of 1861?

A. I was there three or four times; I staid two days at one time; at the other times I only staid during the night; I think the forces occupied Prestonsburg about one month in the fall of 1861.

By same: Q. Could John M. Rice have aided the rebellion while in Prestonsburg and Piketon, without your knowledge?

A. Of course he could.

By same: Q. When you saw John M. Rice in Prestonsburg in the fall of 1861, was he or not generally about headquarters?

A. I cannot state, for I do not know where headquarters were.

Re-cross-examined by Rice’s counsel:

Q. At the time you saw John M. Rice, was he acting as a citizen or not, and without any connection whatever with rebels, so far as you know?

A. He was acting as a citizen, and had no connection, so far as I know, with the army.

By same: Q. Is it not a fact that the gathering at Prestonsburg, which afterwards came to Pikeville, as stated by you, was an unorganized lot of men, without commissioned or sworn in officers, gathered at that place with a view to organize and get authority to act?

A. That is what they said.

By same: Q. Was not their camp out of the town, and was not John M. Rice’s place, during your knowledge, about the hotel and away from the camp?

A. The camp was out of town, and John M. Rice’s place was about the hotel and away from camp. And further this deponent saith not.

One day’s attendance: R. P. ROBINSON.

The deposition of JAMES WEDDINGTON, esq., a witness of lawful age, and first duly sworn.

Examined by counsel of John L. Zeigler:

Question. Mr. Weddington, state your age, place of residence, and occupation. Are you acquainted with Hon. John M. Rice, representative from the ninth congressional district of Kentucky; if yea, how long?

Answer. I think I am sixty-two years of age; I live five miles below Piketon, Pike County, Kentucky, on the main road leading from Prestonsburg to Piketon; I am by occupation a farmer; I am acquainted with Hon. John M. Rice, and have been for ten years or upwards.

By same: Q. State if, in the fall of 1861, you saw Hon. John M. Rice passing your house with a body of armed rebel soldiers; and, if so, how often did you see him passing with them?

A. I saw John M. Rice passing my house at the time referred to with rebel soldiers, both up and down; I cannot say how often.

By same: Q. Was he armed; if armed, what kind of arms did he carry? Describe his arms as well as you can.

A. I seen him have a knife belted around him; I also seen him have a pistol belted around him, though I did not see the knife and pistol both at the same time; I just saw the handle of the knife; it was in a scabbard; the length I could not tell.

By same: Q. Did you see him armed with the knife and pistol when passing your house with the rebel soldiers?

A. He was with the rebel soldiers every time I saw him pass about that time.

By same: Q. Were the rebel soldiers, at the time you saw him passing your house, in the habit of carrying knives in scabbards; and was the knife you saw John M. Rice carrying such as was usually carried by rebel soldiers?

A. Some had knives, some pistols, and some guns; the knife I saw Rice carry looked, or the scabbard did, pretty much as the soldiers carried; some of the soldiers carried long knives and some short ones.

By same: Q. State if you saw John M. Rice, in the fall of 1861, pass your house more than twice with the rebel soldiers when he was armed; did he at the different times you saw him pass with the soldiers seem to be marching with them?

A. I cannot state how often he did pass, but more than twice; they were all riding up and down the public road.

Cross-examined by John M. Rice’s counsel:

Q. Squire Weddington, you have all the time been an unconditional Union man, staid at home during the war, have you not?

A. Yes, sir; that was my politics; and I staid at home during the war.

By same: Q. Did you converse in talk with John M. Rice during the several times you have spoken of passing your house?

A. Not more than howdy; I had no conversation with John.

By same: Q. What do you mean by howdy; did you and him stop and shake hands, or was it speaking to each other at a distance?

A. I mean speaking from the fence to the road.

By same: Q. You and John M. Rice was tolerable friendly, was you not, and are yet?

A. We never had a word in our lives in any kind of malice.

By same: Q. You have said that John M. Rice passed by your house with rebel soldiers several times; you will now state who the rebel soldiers were, and in what time of the year 1861 it was.

A. It was at the time when Williams was said to be in command; in the fall of 1861; I did not know any of the soldiers; they were all strange men to me.

By same: Q. Now do you know, of your own knowledge, that they were soldiers?

A. I don’t know, only what the men (soldiers) said.

By same: Q. Was John M. Rice by when you and those men was talking, and in hearing of you?

A. No, sir.

By same: Q. Is it not a fact that the country was in great commotion about the time you referred to; the Union men was going north, and the southern men going south, and a great stir among the people; it was not known what was best to do, stay at home or run, and a general arming of the people, and it was unsafe to travel separately; that both southern men and Yankees or Union men sought the protection of soldiers, and in fact was the only safe way of traveling; if not, you will state what it was different in?

A. There was a great stir and commotion in this neighborhood; I could not tell how they went; I staid at home; the report of the neighborhood was that people was shifting, some going one way, some another, and that the people were arming; I heard nothing said about traveling; I staid at home.

By same: Q. Was it not the talk of the country and general understanding that it was unsafe to travel by one’s self, that many strangers were passing through the country, and talk of some shooting had been done from the mountains; and was there not a rumor in circulation in the country that the rebels was going to burn and destroy the Union men, and the rumor that the Union men was going to destroy the rebels? State if big tales were not current then in the country, and in fact constituted the stir in the country; if that was not the cause of the stir, state what it was.

A. I did not hear the talk of its being unsafe to travel by one’s self; a good many strange men were passing through the country; I heard no talk of shooting from the mountains; I did hear talk of some shooting from the mountains about the State line, about the time that General John C. Breckinridge went through this county; I never heard the rumor of the rebels threatening to burn up Union men, or Union men burning up rebels; I heard of no big tales afloat.

By same: Q. Squire, is it not a fact about that time you staid very close at home, and thought it best to know and do as little as possible; you did not know whose hands you would fall into?

A. I staid at home and attended to my own business.

By same: Q. Was it not very hard to get anything out of those that came about you; the people was scared, or seemed to be, and did not know what was to happen?

A. Some people would talk and some would not. I was afraid to talk to nobody, and nobody that I know of was afraid to talk to me.

By same: Q. Could you see any difference in the action of the people about that time in this county, and their conversation, toward that heretofore; if so, what was it?

A. There was a great difference in the actions then and before that time, for it seemed that the people were all preparing, it seemed, for war; before that time, it had been peace.

By same: Q. You have said the people was prepared for war about that time- a great difference in the people. Did not they travel more in gangs or companies than they did before the war?

A. They did.

Q. Is it not a fact, when the Union army came into this valley, (Sandy,) that the citizens, many of them who had ran off, came along with the army; and likewise with the rebel army, when they returned, citizens returned?

A. I did with the rebel army; I did not see any with the Union army.

By same: Q. Do I understand from you, if there was danger in the county by persons traveling about the time you saw John M. Rice separately passing your house, you did not know of it?

A. Yes, sir.

By same: Q. You have said John M. Rice had a knife sometimes buckled around him, then, again, a pistol, when he passed your house. State where it was fastened: on the outside of his coat or under it?

A. The pistol was in a new belt, on the outside of his coat, on the right side; the knife was on the outside. I don’t remember which side of his body the knife was; I think in a belt. He did not carry both knife and pistol at the same time.

By same: Q. How long was this after John S. Williams first came to Prestonsburg that you saw John M. Rice passing as you have stated; and do you not recollect of seeing Milton Freese in company with Rice and Green Witten, one or both, at said times, or any of them?

A. I don’t remember how long it was after Williams came that I saw Rice; it was the same fall. I seen him with Freese one time, who had a new belt and a gun. I don’t remember to have seen Witten in company.

By same: Q. You will state where Milton Freese lived at that time; give your best impression.

A. He lived at Piketon or Prestonsburg; I have no impression which at that time.

Q. Is not your memory faded very much on many of the transactions of that day; and are you not uncertain as to many of the transactions that did occur?

A. It is not faded; my memory is perfectly good. I recollect things which happened that day as well as if it had been yesterday, although I may have forgotten some things; everything is certain, to the best of my recollection.

By same: Q. Squire, you will now state if you know, of your own knowledge, of John M. Rice ever doing any act either directly or indirectly in giving aid to the rebellion, or those you know of your own knowledge was in the rebellion or war of the Confederate States against the federal government. If in word, you will state what he said; if in act, you will state what it was, and who was present when it was done. State what you know yourself, and not what you heard from others.

A. I know nothing more than seeing him riding with the soldiers, before referred to, after I saw John with them. I had heard him talk before, but not after that time. I do not know of his doing anything but what I have said.

By same: Q. Was Milton Freese a soldier at that time? Was any of them in uniform?

A. I do not know if he was or not. Freese and Rice had citizen’s clothes; the dress of soldiers I don’t remember.

By same: Q. In the question in which I asked you to give your own knowledge of John M. Rice’s conversations and acts you do not seem to understand. To make it more plain, to your understanding, do you know of your own knowledge that the men along with Rice and Freese were rebel soldiers, and if rebel soldiers, do you know that Rice knew it?

A. I do not know it of my own knowledge.

By same: Q. What kind of a horse was Rice riding? Did he ride the same horse each time?

A. I do not recollect the color of the horse.

By same: Q. Do you recollect when John C. Breckinridge passed through the country; was it before Williams and others congregated at Prestonsburg you have spoken of or not?

A. I recollect of hearing of Breckinridge passing through this county. I think it was before Williams came to Prestonsburg.

By same: Q. Can you now give what time in the fall season, 1861, you saw John M. Rice passing your house as stated; was it as late as October or November; and was it before Humphrey Marshall came into Kentucky; if so, how long was it before Marshall came to Kentucky

A. I cannot say for any certainty; I have nothing to call to mind the time. I do not know whether General Williams was at Piketon or Prestonsburg at the time of and during Rice’s passing my house. I do not recollect when Marshall did come, so I cannot say.

By same: Q. Do you know when the battle of Middle Creek occurred? Give the year and month, and who was the battle between.

A. I don’t remember, to be right certain, when the battle of Middle Creek was fought. It was late in the season, but I cannot, for certain, remember the year or month. I heard the cannon. Was raising a cabin that day.

By same: Q. Was it as late as the year 1863 or 1864; and was it summer or fall season?

A. I do not think it was. It was not in summer, but late in the season.

By same: Q. What season do you refer to -fall, winter, or hog-killing time?

A. I can give no certainty about it. I do not wish to answer, for I cannot remember precise time. It was late in the fall or winter.

By same: Q. Can you now say what year the war commenced?

A. I think it commenced in 1861. A good deal of talk about 1860, but in 1861 they commenced getting in arms in the fall season is my recollection.

By same: Q. What was the distance, you from John M. Rice, as he passed you, as detailed by you? Give it as near as you can.

A. It was some three or four steps.

By same: Q. Did Rice say where he was going and what he was doing at that time?

A. I never talked any with John after they began to pick up arms.

By same: Q. Now, if you recollect any more about John M. Rice’s conduct in 1861 state it; and state what time of the year and what year he was taken by Thornsbury and others at Hatcher’s, if you know.

A. I do not recollect anything more. Rice was captured by Thornsbury and others at Hatcher’s, a few days after the Middle Creek fight. I think the Middle Creek fight was fought in December; if so, it was in 1861.

Re-examined by counsel of John L. Zeigler:

Q. Is it or not a fact the first military organization of the rebel forces at Prestonsburg and Piketon was without any regular uniform-everyone seemed to dress as suited himself or could?

A. It was so with the first men I saw. There was no regularity either as to clothing or arms.

Re-cross-examined by Rice’s counsel:

Q. You will state, if you know of your knowledge there was a rebel organization at Prestonsburg or Pikeville at any time.

A. I do not know anything of my own knowledge about it. And further this deponent saith not.

STATE OF KENTUCKY, County of Pike: JAMES WEDDINGTON. I, William Weddington, judge of the county court of Pike County, in the State of Kentucky, do certify that the foregoing depositions of John Dils, jr., Richard P. Robinson, and James Weddington, jr., were taken before me, and read to and subscribed by them in my presence, at the store-house of Dils and Thornsbury, in Piketon, Pike County, Kentucky, the said John Dils, jr., being examined March 15, 1869, and the said Richard P. Robinson and James Weddington, jr., being examined on the 16th day of March, 1869, to be read as evidence in the trial of the contest of John L. Zeigler against John M. Rice, for a seat as representative from the ninth congressional district of Kentucky in the forty-first Congress of the United States, the said John Dils, jr., Richard P. Robinson, and James Weddington, jr., being by me first sworn that the evidence they should give in the action should be the truth, the whole truth, and nothing but the truth; and the statements of John Dils, jr., being reduced to writing by himself, in my presence, and the statements of Richard P. Robinson and James Weddington, jr., being by consent of parties reduced to writing by Abe C. Ferrell, in my presence, John Harkins, attorney for John L. Zeigler, and George N. Brown, attorney for John M. Rice, being present at the examination. Given under my hand this 16th day of March, 1869. WM. WEDDINGTON, Judge Pike County Court. Judge’s fees, (two days,) $2 TAXATION OF COSTS. One subpoena, thirty cents; entering two witnesses, fifty cents. Two witnesses’ claims. Notice. $4. WM. WEDDINGTON, Judge Pike County Court.

Hon. JOHN M. RICE: SIR: Take notice that I will, on the 11th and 12th days of May, 1869, before John M. Burns, notary public, at his office in the town of Catlettsburg, Boyd County, Kentucky, proceed to take the depositions of Benjamin Burke, John H. Ford, Alfred Holley, William Pugh, William Foster, James Frasier, James Wellman, and Maurice Wellman, all citizens of Catlettsburg, Kentucky, to be read as evidence in the contested election wherein I am contestant and you are contestee, to rebut the attack made upon the character of John Pigg, which testimony is to be used by me as evidence before the House of Representatives of the Congress of the United States, in the contest between yourself and myself for a seat as representative from the ninth congressional district of Kentucky in the forty-first Congress of the United States, and if not completed on said days, to be continued from day to day until the depositions are completed. STATE OF KENTUCKY, Boyd County: JOHN L. ZEIGLER.

Executed the within notice upon John M. Rice, by delivering to him a true copy thereof this 11th day of May, 1869, at 25 minutes after ten o’clock a.m. STATE OF KENTUCKY, Boyd County, set: JAS. R. FORD, M.P. of C.

I, W.O. Hampton, clerk of the county court of the county aforesaid, do certify that James R. Ford, the officer who executed the within notice, is now and was at the time of executing the same the acting marshal of Catlettsburg, and that his signature is genuine. Given under my hand and official seal this 11th day of May, 1869. [SEAL.] W.O. HAMPTON, Clerk.

Depositions. The depositions of Benjamin Burk, John H. Ford, Dr. William Pugh, William Foster, James Frashier, James Wellman, Morris Wellman, and Alfred Haley, taken at the law office of John M. Burns, in the town of Catlettsburg, Boyd County, Kentucky, each and all of them being citizens of said town and county, in the State aforesaid, taken before John M. Burns, a notary public for said county, on the 11th day of May 1869, agreeable to the notice hereto annexed, to be read as evidence on behalf of the contestant, John L. Zeigler, against John M. Rice, in a certain matter of contest now pending before the Congress of the United States, in which the said John L. Zeigler is contestant and John M. Rice is contestee for a seat in the said Congress of the United States aforesaid.

BENJAMIN BURK, being of lawful age, and first duly sworn, states as follows in answer to questions:

Question. State your age, your residence, and how long you have known John Pigg, of Louisa, Lawrence County, Kentucky?

Answer. I am sixty-one years of age; I reside in Catlettsburg, Kentucky; I have known John Pigg, of Louisa, Kentucky, near twenty-five years.

Q. Have you ever lived in Louisa, Kentucky, and how long, and how long since you left there; and are you acquainted with the general character of John Pigg, and how long did you know him in Louisa and Lawrence County?

A. I have lived in Louisa. Kentucky, over twenty years; I left Louisa, Kentucky, eleven or twelve years since; I am acquainted with the general character of John Pigg; I knew him in Louisa and Lawrence County ten or twelve years.

Q. Have you kept up your acquaintance with the general character of John Pigg since you left Louisa, Kentucky?

A. I have.

Q. Is his general character good or bad?

A. His general moral character is undoubtedly good.

Q. Is John Pigg, from his general reputation among his neighbors and acquaintances for truth and veracity, worthy of credit when on oath?

A. Yes, sir; he is.

Q. Have you ever heard the general character of John Pigg for truth and veracity questioned before the same was put in issue in this contest?

A. I never did, sir. B. BURK.

The deposition of JOHN H. FORD, taken at the same time and place, and for the purposes mentioned in the caption; being of lawful age and duly sworn, states, in answer to questions put by contestant:

Question. State your age, your residence, and how long you have resided here, and where you lived before you moved here, and how long you have known John Pigg, of Louisa, Lawrence County, Kentucky?

Answer. I am in my fifty-eighth year, and reside in Catlettsburg, Kentucky; I have resided here eighteen years; I resided in Floyd County, Kentucky, before I moved here; I have known John Pigg, of Lawrence County, Kentucky, since the years of 1836 and 1837.

Q. Are you acquainted with the general character of John Pigg?

A. I am acquainted with John Pigg’s general moral character.

Q. Is that general character good or bad, and, from his general character with his neighbors for truth and veracity, would you believe him when on oath?

A. His general character among his neighbors is good, and from that general moral character I would give him credit on oath.

Q. Have you ever heard his general character for truth and veracity questioned before he was examined in this contest as a witness for the contestant?

A. No, sir; I never did. JOHN H. FORD.

Also, the deposition of Dr. WILLIAM PUGH, taken at the same time and place, and for the purposes mentioned in the caption. The deponent being of lawful age, and duly sworn, states, in answer to interrogatories, as follows:

Question. State your age, your place of residence, and your vocation, and how long you have lived at your present place of residence, and where you lived before you came here?

Answer. My age is sixty-eight years; I reside in Catlettsburg, Kentucky; previous thereto I resided in Louisa, Kentucky; my vocation is that of a druggist and physician; I have resided in Catlettsburg, Kentucky, since 1858 or 1859; I resided in Louisa, Kentucky, about two years.

Q. Are you acquainted with John Pigg, of Louisa, Kentucky?

A. I am; I lived by him all the time I resided in Lawrence County, Kentucky.

Q. Are you acquainted with the general character of John Pigg, and has that acquaintance been kept up since you first became acquainted with it, at Louisa, and is it good or bad, and would you believe him on oath?

A. I am acquainted with the character of John Pigg, or was during my residence there; I have not kept up an acquaintance with John Pigg since I left there, but have heard of him frequently, and seen him frequently, since I left there; since I have known John Pigg, he has been considered by his neighbors as an excellent, industrious citizen; I would most emphatically believe him on oath. WM. PUGH.

Also, the deposition of JAMES FRASHIER, taken at the same time and place, and for the purposes named in the caption. The deponent, being of lawful age, and duly sworn, says, in answer to questions, as follows:

Question. State your age, your residence, and where you last lived before you came to your present residence, and how long you lived there, and if you are acquainted with the general character of John Pigg, of Louisa, and how long you have been acquainted with it, and if, from his general character with his neighbors for truth and veracity, you would believe him on oath?

Answer. My age is fifty-six years; my residence is Catlettsburg, Kentucky; I lived in Louisa, Kentucky, about seven years; I then went to Baltimore, Maryland; I then moved to this place; I have lived in this place three years; I was, and am now, acquainted with the general character of John Pigg, of Louisa, Kentucky; I have known him about eleven years; I would, from John Pigg’s general character, believe him on oath as soon as any man I ever knew in Louisa, Kentucky. JAMES M. FRAZEIR.

Also, the deposition of A.C. HALY, taken at the same time and place, and for the purposes mentioned in the caption; after being duly sworn, in answer to questions, states:

Question. State your age, your place of residence, your occupation, and if you know John Pigg, of Louisa, Kentucky, and how long you have known him, and if you are acquainted with his general character, and if, from his general character for truth and veracity, you would believe him on oath?

Answer. My age is thirty-five years; my place of residence is Catlettsburg, Kentucky; my occupation is that of a painter; I know John Pigg, of Louisa, Kentucky, and have known him over thirteen years; I am acquainted with his general moral character, and from that general moral character I would most certainly give him credit on oath as a witness. Adjourned till tomorrow morning, 9 o’clock. A. C. HAILEY. J. M. BURNS, Notary Public.

Met pursuant to adjournment at the law office of John M. Burns, in Catlettsburg, Kentucky. JOHN M. BURNS, Notary Public.

WILLIAM A. FOSTER Sworn, and in answer to interrogatories put to him after being duly sworn, states:

Question. State your age, your residence, your occupation, and how long you have lived where you now reside, and if you are acquainted with John Pigg, and how long you have known him, and if you are acquainted with the general character of John Pigg, of Louisa, Lawrence County, Kentucky, and if so, how long you have been acquainted with it, and if from that general character among his neighbors and acquaintances for truth and veracity you would believe him on oath; and also state if John M. Rice is in Catlettsburg, Boyd County, Kentucky, today, and was yesterday here.

Answer. My age is sixty-five years; my residence is Catlettsburg, Kentucky; my occupation is that of a dry goods clerk; I have resided at this place seventeen years; I am well acquainted with John Pigg, of Louisa, Kentucky, and have so been for thirty years; I am acquainted with his general moral character; it is good; I never heard anything against it; and from that general moral character I would certainly give him credit when on oath; John M. Rice was yesterday, and is today, in this place, Catlettsburg, Kentucky. W.A. FOSTER.

Also, the deposition of MORRIS WELLMAN, taken at the same time and place, and for the purposes mentioned in the caption:

Question. State your age, your residence, and if you are acquainted with John Pigg, of Louisa, Lawrence County, Kentucky; and how long you have known him, and if you are acquainted with his general character; and if his general character is good or bad; and if, from that character, he is entitled to credit on oath; and if you would believe him on oath; and is John M. Rice here today?

Answer. My age is forty-three years; my residence is Catlettsburg, Kentucky; I am well acquainted with the general moral character of John Pigg, of Louisa, Kentucky, and have been so for twenty-two years; his general moral character is good, and from that general moral character I would give him credit on oath as a witness; John M. Rice is here today. MORRIS WELLMAN.

The deposition of L. T. MOORE, taken at the same time and place, and for the purposes mentioned in the caption:

Question. State your age, your residence, and your occupation; and if you ever resided in Louisa, Lawrence County, Kentucky, and how long you lived there; and if you are acquainted with John Pigg, of Louisa, Kentucky, and how long you have known him; and if you are acquainted with his general character, and if it is good or bad; and if you would from that character believe him on oath?

Answer. I am forty years of age; reside in Catlettsburg, Kentucky; and by profession a lawyer; I resided in Louisa, Kentucky, from 1847 up to 1863; in fact from boyhood; I resided within one mile and less of Louisa; I was, prior to 1863, acquainted with the general moral character of John Pigg, of Louisa; his general character was good; he is a man of strong prejudice, but I never heard his veracity on oath questioned; from his general char acter I would believe him on oath.

Q. State if you are now acquainted with the general character of John Pigg, since the year 1863; and if that character is good or bad; and if he is entitled to credit on oath; and if you ever heard his general character questioned before this contest?

A. I have practiced law in the county of Lawrence, the county of Pigg’s residence, since the year 1863, and before from 1847, and have never heard Pigg’s general character assailed; and, from his general character, I think he is entitled to credit when on oath. L.T. MOORE.

STATE OF KENTUCKY, Boyd County: I, John M. Burns, notary public for said county, in the State above named, do certify that the foregoing depositions of Benjamin Burk, John H. Ford, Alfred Haly, Dr. William Pugh, William A. Foster, James Frashier, Morris Wellman, and L.T. Moore was taken before me, and was read to and subscribed by them in my presence at the time and place and in the contest mentioned in the caption; the said Benjamin Burk, John H. Ford, Alfred Haly, William Pugh, W.A. Foster, James Frasier, Morris Wellman, and L. T. Moore, having being first duly sworn by me that the evidence they should give in the contest should be the truth, the whole truth, and nothing but the truth; and their statements reduced to writing by me in their presence, except L. T. Moore, and his statements was written by himself in my presence, the contestant, J.L. Zeigler, and his attorney being alone present at the examination. Given under my hand and seal of office this 12th May, 1869. [SEAL.] JOHN M. BURNS, Notary Public for Boyd County, Kentucky.

ANSWER OF SITTING MEMBER. Notice. FRANKFORT, January 14, 1869. SIR: I acknowledge the receipt of your notice of intention to contest my right to a seat in the forty- first Congress of the United States for the ninth district of Kentucky. For answer to ground first: It is untrue that under article 14, amendment to the Constitution of the United States, section 3, I am, or was at the time I was voted for at the election holden on the 3d day of November, 1868, ineligible to the place of representative in the Congress of the United States, or to any other office of profit or trust under the United States, or under any State thereof. To reason first: It is true that, as a member of the legislature of the State of Kentucky, prior to the late rebellion, I took an oath to support the Constitution of the United States; but it is untrue that I thereafter gave aid and comfort to the enemies thereof. For answer to reason second: It is true that, as a member of the legislature of Kentucky, I voted, on the 21st day of January, 1861, in favor of what was known as the Ewing resolution, the import of which is not such as indicated by section 2d, ground 1st, of your notice, but is in words as follows: Resolved by the general assembly of the commonwealth of Kentucky, That this general assembly has heard with profound regret of the resolutions recently adopted by the States of New York, Ohio, Maine, and Massachusetts, tendering men and money to the President of the United States, to be used in coercing certain sovereign States of the South into obedience to the federal government. Resolved, That this general assembly receives the action of the legislatures of New York, Ohio, Maine, and Massachusetts as the indication of a purpose upon the part of the people of these States to further complicate existing difficulties by forcing the people of the South to the extremity of submission or resistance; and so regarding it, the governor of the State of Kentucky is hereby requested to inform the executives of each of said States that it is the opinion of this general assembly, that whenever the authorities of these States shall send armed forces to the South, for the purpose indicated in said resolutions, the people of Kentucky, uniting with their brethren of the South, will, as one man, resist such invasion of the soil of the South at all hazards, and to the last extremity. (See house journal, called session 1861, pages 68-9.) Said resolution was adopted nearly three months before the war was inaugurated, and at a time when no one in Kentucky believed in the doctrine of coercion; in fact, it was repudiated by many of the most distinguished leaders of the republican party. The resolution was adopted by a vote of yeas 87, nays 6; among the former of whom were Burnaur, Buckner, Burbridge, Burdett, Jacobs, Goodloe, Neal, Wolfe, and many others, distinguished then as since for their unwavering devotion to the federal government. The doctrines of the Ewing resolution were maintained and adhered to by the Union party of Kentucky after the firing upon Fort Sumter, as evidenced by the address of the executive committee of the Union party of Kentucky, dated the — day of April, 1861. My action, therefore, in that regard was in keeping with the position of the Union party of Kentucky. It is untrue that at the time I voted for the resolution referred to in your second specification, and numbered as “2d reason,” that the people of the southern States were in open rebellion against the government of the United States. Your third ground or reason is false. I did not engage in rebellion, nor was I present with and aiding the enemies of the United States in their rebellion and insurrection against the government of the United States. I deny that any legal notice of disqualification on my part, such as indicated in your notice of contest, was given publicly to the voters of the district prior to the said election holden on the 3d day of November, 1868, for the reason that no such disqualification existed in fact, and for the additional reason that neither yourself or anyone else in said ninth district had any competent authority to serve such notice of disqualification upon the voters of said district. I deny that all or any of the votes cast for me at said election, on the 3d day of November, 1868, were illegal and void. I shall, therefore, resist your claim to have and to hold the position of representative in the Congress of the United States for the ninth district of Kentucky, to which the qualified voters of the district refused to elect you. I claim that I have been legally and fairly elected a member of the forty-first Congress of the United States for the ninth district of Kentucky, by a large majority of the legally qualified voters of said district, at the election holden on the 3d day of November, 1868. That I possess all the qualifications required by the Constitution of the United States, and the laws of Congress passed in pursuance thereto; and that I am not, nor was I, at the time I was voted for at said election, on the 3d day of November, 1868, disqualified from holding the position of member of Congress, by reason of any provision of the Constitution of the United States or amendments thereto; or by reason of any act or law of Congress passed in pursuance thereto. Col. JOHN L. ZEIGLER. STATE OF KENTUCKY, Boyd County, set: JOHN M. RICE.

I, George N. Brown, state that I delivered a copy of the within response to John L. Zeigler on the 18th day of January, 1869. GEORGE N. BROWN. I, William O. Hampton, clerk of the county court within and for the county of Boyd, and State of Kentucky, do certify that George N. Brown, who is personally known to me, this day personally appeared before me and made oath in due form of law, that the statements of the foregoing affidavit subscribed by him are true. Given under my hand and official seal, this 20th day of February, A.D. 1869. [SEAL.] WM. O. HAMPTON, Clerk.

Notice. January 25, 1869. SIR: I acknowledge the notice you had served some days since, by delivering a copy to my wife, in Louisa, Kentucky, (my place of residence,) notifying me that you would commence the taking of proof, in Pikeville, Kentucky, on the 1st day of February next, and at Prestonsburg, and Catlettsburg on other days therein named, in the same month, to be read as evidence in your behalf, on the trial of the grounds set forth in your notice executed on me, contesting my seat as a member of the forty-first Congress of the United States for the ninth congressional district of Kentucky. You are hereby notified that I will, on the 13th day of February, 1869, at the law office of George N. Brown, in Catlettsburg, Kentucky, before Joseph Patton, presiding judge of the Boyd County court, or in the event of his inability or failure to attend, before some other officer who is by law authorized to take depositions in such cases, proceed to take the depositions of Colbert Cecil, jr., William Sloan, John S. Mahan, John M. Burns, Colonel L.T. Moore, John Hampton, James R. Ford, and George N. Brown. I will, also, at the clerk’s office of the Lawrence circuit court, in Louisa, Lawrence County, Kentucky, before John M. Clayton, presiding judge of the Lawrence County court, or in the event of his inability or failure to attend, before some other officer who is by law authorized to take depositions in such cases, proceed on the 15th and 16th days of the same month (February 1869) to take the depositions of R.T. Burns, Samuel Short, J.B. Hutchinson, William Vinson, F. Moore, jr., Colonel George W. Gallup, R.E. Vinson, John Diamond, George Diamond, M.B. Gable, J.H. O’Brian, Ralph Booton, Major D.J. Burchell, and Mrs. Samuel Wellman. I will, also, on the 19th and 20th days of the same month, (February 1869,) at the circuit court clerk’s office, in the town of Prestonsburg, Floyd County, Kentucky, before James P. Harris, presiding judge of the county court, of Floyd County Kentucky, or in the event of his inability or failure to attend, before some other officer by law authorized to take depositions in such cases, proceed to take the depositions of G.M. Witten, James M. Sackert, R.S. Friend, John Harkins, Solomon Stratton, and William J. May. I will, also, at the clerk’s office of the Pike circuit court, in the town of Pikeville, Pike County, Kentucky, on the 22d, 23d, 24th, 25th, and 26th days of the same month, (February 1869,) before William Weddington, presiding judge of the Pike County court, or in the event of his inability or failure to attend, before some other officer who by law is authorized to take depositions in such cases, proceed to take the depositions of Colbert Cecil, sr., A.M. Hatcher, R.M. Ferrell, A. Ferrell, H. Ford, N. Hamilton, William Robertson, S.M. Ferguson, Jas. E. Ratcliff, James Ferguson, M. Lawson, Thomas O. Morris, Harmon Morris, John Dills, jr., John E. Cecil, A.J. Hatcher, Isaac Robertson, J. Osborn, Thomas J. Owings; to be read as evidence in my behalf, and in refutation of the charges contained in your notice served on me, and in support of my response thereto . At each place, and on each day, the taking of proof or depositions will be between the hours of 9 o’clock a.m. and 4 o’clock p.m., at which time and places you are respectfully requested to attend. Colonel JOHN L. ZEIGLER. JOHN M. RICE.

Executed on Mrs. Susan Zeigler, wife of John L. Zeigler, the within person named, he being absent, by giving a true copy of the within notice, on the 28th of January, 1869, at 20 minutes before 9 o’clock a.m. The notice was executed on Mrs. Zeigler, as aforesaid, at the residence of John L. Zeigler, in the town of Catlettsburg, Kentucky. JAS. R. FORD, N.P.F.C.

Depositions. The depositions of C. Cecil, jr., taken on the 13th day of February, A. D. 1869, at the law office of George N. Brown, in the town of Catlettsburg, Boyd County, Kentucky. To be read as evidence before the House of Representatives of the United States of America, (or a committee of the same,) in the trial of the contest pending therein, between John L. Zeigler and John M. Rice, for a seat in said House of Representatives as representative from the ninth congressional district of the State of Kentucky, in the forty-first Congress of the United States.

C. CECIL, jr., after being duly sworn according to law, deposeth and saith:

An examination in chief by the attorney of John M. Rice:

Question. Are you acquainted with John M. Rice? If yea, state in your answer, as near as you can, how long you have known him.

Answer. I am acquainted with John M. Rice; I have known him for twelve or fifteen years.

Q. State, if you know, where John M. Rice was living at the time the war began in 1861.

A. John M. Rice was living at Louisa, Kentucky.

Q. State where you resided prior to the war, and during the first two years of the war, and where you now reside?

A. Prior to the war, I resided at Pikeville, Kentucky, and up to 1862 I resided there, when I removed to Catlettsburg, Kentucky, and I am now living at Catlettsburg, Kentucky.

Q. If you know where John M. Rice lived for some years prior to March, 1861; if so, state where.

A. He lived at Pikeville, Kentucky, prior to 1861, for some several years.

Q. If you know where he has resided since March, 1861; if so, state.

A. He has resided at Louisa, Lawrence County, Kentucky.

Q. If you know where John M. Rice was in September, October, November, and December 1861, or at any other time during the rebellion, state it.

A. John M. Rice was in Pikeville, Kentucky in November, 1861, and out in State of Virginia. John M. Rice and myself and some others left Pikeville, Kentucky, about the 10th day of November, 1861, and went by the way of Gladeville to Abingdon, Virginia. A day or two after we got to Abingdon, Virginia, I was taken sick and John M. Rice remained with me some ten or fifteen days; after which time John M. Rice started for Kentucky; and on my return to Kentucky, and when I went down to Louisa, Kentucky, I found said Rice at Louisa, Kentucky, which was in June, 1862; and at various times during the war, after June 1862, I saw him at Louisa, Kentucky.

Q. State what the profession of Rice was before the war, and during the time he resided in Pikeville.

A. He was a lawyer.

Q. State if you know whether or not John M. Rice had considerable sums due him for fees in Pike County at the breaking out of the war.

A. I think he had.

Q. Had he or not a brother residing in Pikeville from March 1861, up to and after the army of General Nelson took possession of said town?

A. John M. Rice had a brother residing at Pikeville, Kentucky, before November 1861, and for some months before; do not recollect the exact time.

Q. Do you or not know of John M. Rice, with other non-combatants, upon the approach of Nelson and his forces near Pikeville, leaving and going out to Virginia; and if you know, state the causes that induced this action in the people.

A. John M. Rice and myself, together with others, on the approach of Nelson and his forces, left and went out to Virginia; my reason for going was the rumor and personal enemies that was with Nelson and his forces; I did not think it was safe to fall into their hands. The rumor was that they were treating the citizens very badly; was killing or would kill them, or many of them. From the conversation that I had with Rice, the same reason induced him to go to Virginia that induced me.

Q. Is it or not the fact that during the organization of the federal forces on Sandy, and before they were officered and disciplined, that they were dangerous, and disposed to maltreat non-combatants or those who were not in the service, or who differed with them in politics; and whether it is not the fact that lawyers, as a class, were, as a general thing, hunted down and maltreated by those who had been prosecuted for crime, or those who had been in litigation, and whether or not Nelson’s army was composed of a great many of that class of soldiers?

A. In answer to first part of interrogatory number eleven, it was. To the second part of interrogatory witness answers in the affirmative. In answer to third part of said interrogatory witness says that there was many of that class of persons with Nelson’s army from Pike County. C. CECIL, JR.

The counsel for Zeigler excepts and objects to the foregoing deposition: 1st. Because the taking of the same does not conform to the notice or counter-notice of contestant or contestee. 2d. Because the deposition is not taken in conformity to the counter-notice, or before the proper officer, as provided by law, in cases of contest for seats in Congress. 3d. Because the same is illegal, irrelevant, and contrary to law. 4th. Because the notice does not specify the officer before whom the foregoing deposition was taken, as required by law. 5th. Because the testimony of the witness examined is not confined to the points contained in the answer of the contestee, (J.M. Rice.) 6th. Because the notice and answer of contestee (John M. Rice) is not attached to the deposition, as required by law. 7th. Because the contestant had given notice that this day he would take depositions in support of the charges in his notice of contest, at Prestonsburg, Floyd County, Kentucky, which notice was given before the notice of the contestee, to take, on this day, (13th February,) such notices and proof. The above exceptions are refused, together with depositions.

STATE OF KENTUCKY, Boyd County: J.D. JONES, Notary Public I, J.D. Jones, notary public for Boyd County, do certify that the foregoing deposition of C. Cecil, jr., was taken before me, and was read to and subscribed by him, in my presence, at the time and place, and in the contest, and for the purposes mentioned in the caption; the said Cecil having been first duly sworn by me that evidence that he should give in the contest should be the truth, the whole truth, and nothing but truth, and his statements, reduced to writing by me in his presence. The contestant, John L. Zeigler, and attorney, and the agent of John M. Rice, the contestee, being present at the examination. Given under my hand and seal this 13th day of February, 1869. [SEAL.] One deposition … Postage.. Paid by Rice. J. D. JONES, Notary Public. NOTARY FEE. $1. J.D. JONES, Notary Public.

Notice. Mr. JOHN ZEIGLER: You will take notice that I will, on the 5th day of March next, at the law office of K.F. Prichard, in the town of Louisa, Lawrence County, Kentucky, proceed to take the depositions of Mrs. Wellman, John Diamond, M. Frazer, Jake Rice, and George Diamond, all residents of the county of Lawrence, Kentucky, will be taken before John M. Clayton, presiding judge of the Lawrence County court, and will continue the said taking on the following day, if necessary to complete the same. Said proof will be taken to be read in the forty-first Congress of the United States, on the trial of the notice of contest of yourself against me, for my seat as member elect of Congress from the ninth congressional district of Kentucky to the forty first Congress, at which time and place you can attend, if you choose. In the event John M. Clayton, judge as aforesaid, should be absent or unable to attend to the taking of said proof, the same will be taken before Jake Rice, a notary public of Lawrence County, at said time and place. This 25th February, 1869. STATE OF KENTUCKY, Lawrence County. JOHN M. RICE.

Before me, a notary public, in and for Lawrence County, Kentucky, this day personally appeared George N. Brown, who being duly sworn, states on oath that he executed the within notice on John L. Zeigler, on the 25th of February, 1869, at Louisa, Lawrence County, Kentucky, by delivering to him a true copy of the said notice, and that he has no interest in the contest between said Zeigler and John M. Rice for a seat in the forty- first Congress of the United States. GEORGE N. BROWN. Sworn to by George N. Brown, before me, the day and date above written. Witness my hand and official seal. [SEAL.] K.F. PRICHARD, Notary Public for Lawrence County, Kentucky.

Depositions. The depositions of George R. Diamond, Mrs. A.A. Wellman, and Jake Rice, residents of Lawrence County, Kentucky, taken before me at the law office of K.F. Prichard, in Louisa, Lawrence County, and State of Kentucky, on the 5th day of March, 1869, to be used as evidence for and on behalf of the Hon. John M. Rice, on the trial of a contest before the forty-first Congress of the United States, between said Rice and John L. Zeigler, for the position of Congressman from the ninth congressional district of the State of Kentucky.

JAKE RICE, of lawful age, and first duly sworn, in answer to questions states, By Rice’s counsel:

Question. State your age, name, residence and occupation.

Answer. My age is forty-two years; my residence is near Louisa, Kentucky; my occupation, a lawyer. By same.

Q. Please state whether or not you are and have been acquainted with the Hon. John M. Rice; and if so, how long have you known him, and what relation are you to him?

A. I am acquainted with John M. Rice. I have known him since his infancy. He is my brother.

By same: Q. State where you lived in 1861.

A. I moved to Pikeville, in Pike County, about the 10th of March, 1861, and remained there until May, or about the 1st of June, 1862.

By same: Q. Please state about what time in 1861, if at all, that John M. Rice came to Piketon, Kentucky.

A. My recollection is not distinct as to the exact time, but it was in the month of October 1861.

By same: Q. How long did he stay at Piketon; what business or avocation did he follow whilst there, if you know; and when did he leave Piketon, and where did he go to?

A. He staid in Piketon about a month. I do not know that he was doing anything; he boarded at Hibbard Williamson’s, and was frequently at my house. He left Piketon and went to Abbington, Virginia, about the middle of November following.

By same: Q. Please state whether or not John M. Rice had not, for several years, been a lawyer residing at Piketon, Kentucky; and is it or not true, to your knowledge, that his business was unsettled when he came there in 1861?

A. John M. Rice had been a practicing lawyer in Piketon for six or seven years. He left there and moved to Louisa, Kentucky, about a week after I went there. I know that he had a considerable outstanding business to settle there.

By same: Q. State what he went to Virginia for, if you know, and what he did after he got there, and whilst going there.

A. From his statements, it was through fear of violence he went there. I went with him. After he got there, he put up at the Virginia Hotel; and soon after we got there, C. Cecil, jr., was taken sick and John M. Rice put in the most of his time in waiting on him; we only traveled, as other travelers, in going there.

By same: Q. Please state when did John M. Rice return to Piketon from Abbington, Virginia, and what he did up to the time of his arrest, if you—

A. He returned to Piketon from Abbington in about a fortnight. He stopped at Hibbard Williamson’s, and staid a few days, and then went down to the Widow Hatcher’s, as I understand, and was arrested.

By same: Q. State, during all the time you have spoken of in which you saw or knew Mr. Rice in 1861, or ’62, did he have any connection whatever with the confederate forces; or did he give aid and comfort to the rebellion, or those engaged in armed rebellion?

A. He did not belong to the confederate army during all the time I knew him. If he ever aided or abetted the armed rebellion, or those engaged in the insurrection, I never knew it.

By same: Q. Please state whether or not John M. Rice did not bring down upon him the ill-will of the confederate leaders, General Williams and others, because he would not join the rebels.

A. I heard General Williams abusing him and others for not entering the rebel service.

Q. If you know, state what was John M. Rice’s intention, when he came to Piketon and up to the date of his arrest, as to returning home when he was assured he could do it in safety?

A. I heard him express himself frequently that he would return home as soon as he thought he could do so in safety, and that he intended to do so as soon as he could have the assurance that he could do so in safety.

Q. What was his course after he returned home? Did he engage or serve in any military organization; and if so, in what capacity?

A. After he returned home, I saw him in May or June 1862, and lived near him, and was at his house frequently during the balance of the war; his conduct was that of a law-abiding man, so far as I know or believe. In the spring of 1863, or in 1864, the Sixty-eighth regiment of militia, of Kentucky, was called out under the proclamation of Colonel G.W. Gallup, Union commander of the post at Louisa; and John M. Rice was quartermaster during the service at that call, and I was quartermaster sergeant under him. The Sixty-eighth regiment was again called out and John M. Rice served as quartermaster sergeant under Thomas Wallace. The whole time served by him in the militia service was between two and three months. And further this deponent saith not. JAKE RICE.

Mrs. A. A. WELLMAN, of lawful age and first duly sworn, states in answer to questions by RICE’s counsel:

Question. Please state your name, age, and residence, and state whether or not you are acquainted with Hon. John M. Rice and if so, how long have you known him.

Answer. My name is A.A. Wellman; my residence, Louisa, Kentucky; age, forty-six years; I am acquainted with the Hon. John M. Rice, and have known him ever since he was a child.

By same: Q. Please state where you resided in September and October 1861, and state, if you know, where Hon. John M. Rice lived at the same time.

A. We both lived in Louisa at that time, where we now live.

By same: Q. Please state whether or not yourself and others and said Rice went together to Prestonsburg, Kentucky, in September, 1861; and if so, do you know for what purposes he went there and whether or not it was his intention to return or not?

A. Myself, John M. Rice, and Malissa Franklin went to Prestonsburg together, about the middle of September, 1861; the business of John Rice was, as I understood, to collect money; ho had no money with him, and tried hard to get money before I agreed to go with him; he promised to return with me and he said he would; his conversation all the time before we got there was that he would return with us; a short time after we got to Prestonsburg, his sister, Amanda Rice, came there with the intelligence that her father, James M. Rice, George B. Poage, and Samuel Short, two of John M. Rice’s brothers-in- law, had been arrested by the federal authorities; and after John M. Rice had learned these facts, as I learned from him, that he did not intend to return until his wife sent him word that it was safe for him to come home, and he requested me to tell his wife to send him word when it was safe for him to come home.

By same: Q. Please state whether or not, to your knowledge, John M. Rice ever in any manner aided, abetted, or comforted the rebels at Prestonsburg or elsewhere, or those engaged in rebellion or insurrection against the United States, or doing an act to assist the rebellion.

A. So far as I know or believe, he never did. And further this deponent saith not. A. A. WELLMAN.

GEORGE R. DIAMOND, of lawful age, and first duly sworn, states in answer to questions by RICE’s counsel:

Question. Please state your residence, occupation, and age.

Answer. My residence, Louisa, Kentucky; my occupation, a hotel keeper; my age, thirty-one years.

Q. Where did you live in 1861?

A. Near Louisa, Kentucky.

Q. If you were in the confederate service in 1861, state at what place you first entered it.

A. I was; I entered it at Prestonsburg, about the 22d day of November or October 1861.

Q. Please state what rank as an officer you ever held, if any, in said service, and how long you were connected with it.

A. I held the rank of lieutenant in the year 1861, and soon after I was promoted to captain; in 1863 I was promoted to the rank of major; and in the same year I was promoted to lieutenant-colonel; after the surrender of Lee and Johnson in 1865, I was promoted by General Breckenridge, secretary of war, to colonel, which I considered as complemental.

Q. State whether or not you at any time recruited one or more companies for the confederate service; and if so, when.

A. I did; I recruited four companies in the latter part of 1863, and the fore part of 1864, and assisted in recruiting one company in the fall of 1861.

Q. State whether or not you ever received a commission or commissions to recruit said companies. Was a commission ever issued to your knowledge by the confederate government to recruit a company? How low an officer in rank in the military service received commissions in the confederate army, if you know?

A. I never had a commission to recruit a company; the only authority that I ever had was an order from my commanding officer. No commission was ever issued to recruit a company in the confederate service to my knowledge. My understanding was that no officer under the rank of colonel ever received a commission from the confederate government, or secretary of war; the muster roll showed the rank of the company officers, and the said rolls of the company and regiment, together with the reports of the commanding officers to the proper authority, showed the rank of the regimental officers. I never had a commission as major, or as lieutenant-colonel, but was promoted by order of General Breckinridge, as before stated, to the rank of colonel, in the year 1865.

Q. Are you acquainted with Hon. John M. Rice, of Louisa, Lawrence County, Kentucky; and if so, how long have you known him?

A. I am acquainted with John M. Rice, and have known him ever since I was a boy.

Q. State whether or not you know anything about his going to Prestonsburg, Floyd County, Kentucky, in the fall of 1861; and if so, do you know what he did while there? Were you then intimate with him?

A. I remember of seeing him there in the fall of 1861. I do not know how he came to be there, or what his business was. I was well acquainted with him at that time.

Q. During the time he was at Prestonsburg, was Rice in any way connected with the confederate service?

A. He was not to my knowledge.

Q. Was any company being organized there during the time he was there?

A. There was.

Q. State whether or not you know of the command of a company being tendered to Rice in the confederate service, and say whether or not he accepted or declined to accept it; and if so, when and where was it?

A. In October or November 1861, there was a company temporarily organized at Prestonsburg by John Sparks. In that organization Jesse Meek was elected first lieutenant and myself second lieutenant, and from some cause I do not remember, Sparks left the company. Meek and myself went to Freese’s hotel in Prestonsburg to see John M. Rice and tendered him the command of the company, and he refused to accept of it. I then took a portion of the company and attached it to a company that was being organized by Hawkins, who was afterward captain. After Rice’s declination, Meek left the company and returned to his home in Louisa.

Q. Please state whether or not John M. Rice did or not bring down upon himself the displeasure and censure of the leaders and men in the confederate service because of his refusal to enter said service.

A. I do know that he incurred the displeasure of the confederates. I frequently heard General John S. Williams say that Rice could, if he would, recruit a regiment or brigade in Northeastern Kentucky if he would. I heard him say that such men as John Rice should be forced to go into the confederate service or leave the country. I have also heard other confederate officers complain of John M. Rice’s not entering the confederate service.

By the same: Q. State if you know when General H. Marshall first came into Kentucky with forces.

A. My recollection is that it was in the latter part of December 1861.

Q. State whether or not you ever knew Hon. John M. Rice to give aid and comfort or assist any of those engaged in the late rebellion against the United States.

A. He never did that I know of. And further this deponent saith not.

STATE OF KENTUCKY, Lawrence County, set: GEORGE R. DIAMOND.

I, John M. Clayton, judge of Lawrence County, do certify that the foregoing depositions of Jake Rice, Mrs. A.A. Wellman, and George R. Diamond were taken before me and were read to and subscribed by them in my presence, at the time and place and in the contest mentioned in the caption, the said Jake Rice, A.A. Wellman, and George R. Diamond having been first sworn by me that the evidence they shall give in the action should be the truth, the whole truth and nothing but the truth, and their statements reduced to writing by me in their presence, K.F. Pritchard, attorney for John M. Rice, alone being present at the examination. Given under my hand this 5th day of March, 1869. STATE OF KENTUCKY, Lawrence County, 88: JNO. M. CLAYTON, Judge of the Lawrence County Court.

I, R.F. Vinson, clerk of the county court in and for the county and State aforesaid, certify that John M. Clayton, esq., before whom the foregoing depositions of Jake Rice, A.A. Wellman, and George R. Diamond were taken, was at the time and still is a county judge in and for Lawrence County, Kentucky, duly commissioned and sworn. All his official acts as such, are entitled to full faith and credit, and his signature thereto is genuine. Given under my hand and seal, as county court clerk, this 8th day of March, 1869. [SEAL.] R.F. VINSON, Clerk of Lawrence County Court, Kentucky.

PIKE CIRCUIT COURT: The Commonwealth or Kentucky against Martin Thornsbury: Indictment. The grand jury of Pike County, in the name and by the authority of the commonwealth of Kentucky, accuse Martin Thornsbury of the offense of perjury, committed as follows: The said Martin Thornsbury, on the 30th day of May, 1867, in the county and circuit aforesaid, on his examination as a witness duly sworn to testify the truth on the trial of a civil action in the Pike circuit court, between Martin Thornsbury, administrator of Martin Fulkerson, plaintiff, and Richard Potter, sr., defendant, which court had authority to administer such oath, falsely and corruptly testified that he and Isaac E. Gray had met old man Potter in the road a short time before; that Gray pulled out and read over to Potter the whole of the account sued upon; and that Potter said that it was just; the matters so testified being material and the testimony being willfully and corruptly false, against the peace and dignity of the Commonwealth of Kentucky, K.F. PRICHARD, Commonwealth Attorney. Filed May 9, 1868.

R.M. FERRELL, Deputy for H. Ford, Clerk. PIKE CIRCUIT COURT: I, R.M. Ferrell, clerk of the Pike circuit court, do herby certify that the foregoing is a true and correct copy of the indictment against Martin Thornbury, late pending in the Pike circuit court. Given under my hand and official seal, this 18th day of March 1869. [SEAL.] R.M. FERRELL, Clerk Pike Circuit Court.

Depositions. The deposition of Hibbard Williamson, Silas W. Ratliff, James Honaker, Nelson Hamilton, Lucas B. Sword, taken at the clerk’s office of the Pike County court in the town of Pikeville, Pike County, Kentucky, on the 18th day of March, 1869, pursuant to a notice hereto annexed, to be read on behalf of John M. Rice, member elect to the forty-first Congress of the United States, in the trial of the contest of John L. Zeigler, contesting his seat as member of the said Congress.

The deponent, HIBBARD WILLAMSON, of lawful age, and first duly sworn:

Question by the counsel of JOHN M. RICE, contestee:

Question. You will, Mr. Williamson, state your age, occupation, and residence; where you resided in 1861, the fall thereof, and for some time previous; you will also state how long you have been acquainted with John M. Rice, the member elect now to the forty-first Congress of the United States.

Answer. I am forty-three years old. I live in the town of Pikeville, and my occupation is the clerk of the Pike County court. I have known John M. Rice some twenty years. I lived in the town of Pikeville in the fall of 1856, and lived in said town all the time until in March 1862.

Q. If you know the whereabouts or what John M. Rice was doing in the fall of 1861, and up to the time he was arrested in January 1862, by Martin Thornbury, and others, you will state it; with whom he boarded and your opportunities to know?

A. John M. Rice came to my house in the town of Pikeville in the fall of 1861; some three or four weeks before Colonel John S. Williams came to this place. He boarded with me about two weeks, and then he went off, and he never was in the town of Pikeville until after Colonel Williams came to Pikeville, and he was sent for by Jake Rice’s wife; Jake Rice was taken sick, and we all thought he would not live, and he was sent for to come and see his brother; he staid with me all the time he staid in town, or while he staid in the county, till the 9th day of November, 1861; he was at my house on the day that the fight was at Ivy; left in the morning that Williams left this place; he left before Williams and his men that he had with him.

Q. You will state if you and John M. Rice were not on the best of terms, associated together during his being about where you were; and during the time his stay in Pikeville, do you know of his going toward Prestonsburg, down the main road by James Weddington’s, esq. If so, if you observed him in arms, with pistol, knife, or anything else buckled around him, you will state it, during the fall 1861, or any other time.

A. I was with John M. Rice the most of the time while at Pikeville. We were on the best of terms with each other. When he left Pikeville, I don’t know where he went; I think he went down the river. I never seen him have any arms of any kind. If he had of had arms, I think I would have seen them.

Q. Are you acquainted with Melton Freese, spoken of by James Weddington, esq., in his deposition? If so, was he about Pikeville during the fall 1861, and during the time John M. Rice was there? If so, was he a confederate soldier, or connected with the rebels? Did he go down the road referred to in last question? If so, state who accompanied him. And, if he had company, was there any person along that wore a new belt, with a pistol or knife? If so, state who he was and how he carried it; and give the size if any such person and appearance to John M. Rice.

A. I am acquainted with Melton Freese. He lived in Pikeville, in the town of Pikeville, in the fall of 1861. If he ever belonged to the army, I never knew it. He went from Pikeville to Prestonsburg several times in the fall of 1861, in company with Walker Porter with him. Porter had a large knife and pistol hung to his side in a large belt. Walker Porter looked a good deal like John M. Rice.

Q. If John M. Rice had used articles of the above indication do you think it possible that you would not have known it?

A. He could not of had them about him without me of seen them, for he slept in my house and eat with me three times a day, and I never seen him with any arms of any kind.

Q. Have you any knowledge of John M. Rice giving aid or comfort, directly or indirectly, to the rebels or those engaged in the rebellion?

You will state where John M. Rice resided for many years before the spring or summer of 1861; what his business was; and if Rice publicly talked what he was up here for in this county, and why it was he did not go home. You will state what was the public rumor in this country or about the time John M. Rice was up here, as to arrest and imprisonment of individuals by the federal forces; if statements of the arrest of any of Rice’s friends had occurred. What was the condition of the country about traveling separately? Was it safe to do so; and did they not travel in squads? And did not citizens that had no connection with the army, when travel was necessary, seek protection of the armed men- matters not which side they were on? State if what were called guerillas were said and believed to be in the mountains and on the roadsides, and dangerous for traveling. Shooting had been done from the mountains; state all you know about it.

A. I never seen or heard him give aid or comfort in any way or manner. John M. Rice lived in the town of Pikeville for several years. In the spring of 1861, he moved to the town of Louisa, and has lived there ever since. He said he was not safe at home, and he came up here to keep from being arrested and sent off to prison. His wife sent to him while he was at my house, in the fall of 1861, not to come home, for he was in danger of being arrested and sent off. There was armed men lying in the woods on every side, and it was unsafe for any person to travel alone. I think it was unsafe for any person to have traveled alone. The most of men traveled in squads for their protection. I heard of men being shot at in several places.

Q. Are you or not certain as to the time of John M. Rice coming to Pikeville while Williams and command were there; that it was after he came there, and after he was sent for to see his brother? And was Colonel John Dils here (Pikeville) at the time Williams came?

A. The most of Williams’s men was at Pikeville and at William Cecil’s farm; and he was sent for by Jake Rice’s wife, and came to Pikeville when sent for to see his brother, and came in the night. John Dils was then lying out in the woods when Williams was in this place, and staid out till Williams sent after him. Further this deponent saith not. HIBBARD WILLIAMSON.

The deponent SILAS W. RATLIFF, of lawful age, and sworn:

Questions by JOHN M. RICE’s counsel:

Question. Mr. Ratliff, you will state your age, occupation, and residence; if in Pike County, say how long you have lived there; where you resided in the fall of 1861; if on the public road, how far from Squire James Weddington, a witness to this on the 16th instant by Colonel John L. Zeigler; if you are acquainted with John M. Rice, the member elect for the forty-first Congress of the United States from the ninth district of Kentucky, and how long you have known him.

Answer. My age is forty years old, and have lived in the county of Pike, Kentucky, from my birth up to this time; and lived a short distance below Squire James Weddington in 1861, on the public road to Prestonsburg. I am acquainted with John M. Rice, the member-elect from the forty-first Congress, and have been for some fifteen or sixteen years- immediately after he came to Pikeville.

Q. If you know of his, Rice’s, traveling down that road you lived on during the fall of 1861, you will state it. If you ever saw him with a pistol or knife fastened around him in a new belt, or any other sort, you will state it. You will state if you were acquainted with Melton Freese and saw him traveling on said road in company with persons; and if you saw any particular individual wearing a pistol or knife in a new belt fastened on the outside of his coat in the fall of 1861, you will state who it was.

A. I have seen John M. Rice traveling up and down the road in the fall of 1861. I never seen him armed in any style at any time. I am acquainted with Melton Freese and Walker Porter, and have seen them travel together several times up and down the road; and have seen Walker Porter with a new belt around him, with a pistol and a large knife hung to it, in the fall of 1861.

Q. Did you belong to the confederate service at any time during the war?

A. I did after the fall of 1861. I joined in the fall of 1862.

Q. Were you acquainted with many of the officers and men that were in the Sandy Valley in the fall of 1861, with General John S. Williams-commonly called rebels? If so, did you hear them speak of John M. Rice, A.L. Martin, and Green M. Witten and others, for their course in the preparation for war? If so, state what was Rice’s character as entertained by them.

A. I was acquainted with a great many of the officers and men that belonged to Williams’s command, and have frequently heard them talk about John M. Rice and others after I joined the army, and they censured them about their course for not assisting the army.

Q. You will state if you were acquainted with Platt Moore, David Powell, Stephen Loar, Harrison Ratliff, and Lucas B. Sword. If so, do you know whether or not they were rebels, or were engaged in the rebellion in the fall of 1861, or at the time John M. Rice was taken a prisoner at A.W. Hatcher’s by Martin Thornbury and others, about January 10, 1862? Do you recollect when John M. Rice was taken prisoner by Thornbury and others? If so, state it.

A. I am acquainted with all the above named men, and none of them belonged to the confederate army at that time, and never joined the army till after I joined the army in the fall of 1862. John M. Rice was taken prisoner by Thornbury and others about the 10th or 12th of January 1862, or about the Middle Creek fight.

Q. Are you acquainted with Martin Thornbury and his general character in the neighborhood he lives in?

A. I am acquainted with it.

Q. Is he or not a malignant, vindictive man from his general character?

A. He is.

Q. You will state if it is not the public talk that he has been indicted for the crime of perjury in the Pike circuit, and disposed of his property with the fraudulent intent to take the benefit of the bankrupt law.

A. That’s the talk.

Q. From the general rumor of the country, is his character good or bad?

A. It is bad. Further this deponent saith not. SILAS W. RATLIFF.

The deposition of JAMES HONAKER, taken at the same time and place, of lawful age, and sworn:

Questions by RICE’s attorney:

Question. You will state your age; residence; how long you have lived in Pike; if that county, how far from Pikeville; if you were and are acquainted with John M. Rice, the member-elect to the forty-first Congress of the United States from the ninth district of Kentucky; how long have you known him; and if your acquaintance was of a very intimate character or not.

Answer. My age is thirty-seven. I was born in Pikeville, in Pike County, Kentucky, and was raised three miles below said town, and have lived in said county ever since, and am acquainted with the said John M. Rice, and have been for about fifteen or sixteen years; and our acquaintance was intimate.

Q. Were you frequently in company, and saw John M. Rice in the fall of 1861, and up to his capture in January 1862?

A. I was with him frequently in the fall of 1861, and in January 1862, when he was taken prisoner.

Q. Did you know of his either directly or indirectly giving aid or comfort to the rebellion or those in arms against the government of the United States?

A. I never did.

Q. Did you ever see him with a pistol or knife fastened around him outside of his coat, with M. Freese or anyone else?

A. I never seen him with a pistol or knife in my life.

Q. Did you ever see any other person with M. Freese traveling up or down the public road that passes by James Weddington’s with a large new belt with a pistol and knife in it, or either of them? If so, who was it; and if that individual resembled John M. Rice or not?

A. I have seen Walker Porter and Milton Freese go up and down the road that runs by James Weddington’s several times, and have seen Porter have a new belt around him, with a large knife and pistol in it.

Q. Did either of them, that is Freese or Porter, belong to the rebel service in the year 1861 or 1862, or during the war?

A. They did not that I know of. They was not so recognized by the confederate army.

Q. Were you acquainted with Platt Moore, Stephen Loar, David Powell, Lucas B. Sword, and Harrison Ratliff? If so, did they, or either of them, belong to the rebel service in 1861, and as early as the Middle Creek fight, about the 10th of January, 1862?

A. They did not. I am well acquainted with them. All those that did join joined in September 1862, about the time that I did. Moore, Powell, and Loar belonged to the company that I did.

Q. Was you or not a captain in the confederate service? If so, did you have a commission or was that grade of officers commissioned by the so-called confederate government?

A. I was a captain, and had no commission. There was none of the officers of that grade that I heard of. Our company was organized and then they elected the officers themselves, and that was all that was about it.

By same: Q. What was the condition of this country in the fall of 1861? Was there great excitement, all sorts of rumors of the Yankees coming up Sandy, burning, killing, and shooting from the hills; that many quiet, peaceable citizens left home that never had anything to do with the war, even women and children; and when traveling was necessary to be done by citizens, that they went in squads, or along with armed men, for protection?

A. It was rumored through the country that the Yankees was coming up the river and was killing every rebel they seen. There was a great excitement in the country, and every person was on the run in small companies for their safety. Even women, and men that never had anything to do with the army, was on the run.

By same: Q. What was John M. Rice’s reputation among the officers and soldiers of the rebel service? Was he talked bad of for his not taking part with them? What was his status with them?

A. He was considered a coward, and abused by Williams’s men and officers; and I heard John S. Williams curse him to his face and tell him he was a coward or he would join the army. The abuse above named was because he would not join the army and aid them in the army.

By same: Q. Are you acquainted with general moral character of Martin Thornbury, a witness sworn in this case, in the neighborhood and country in which he is known?

A. I am.

By same: Q. Is that character good or bad?

A. It is bad, from the rumor of the country. Further, this deponent saith not. JAMES HONAKER.

The deposition of NELSON HAMILTON, taken at the same time and place, and for the same purpose, sworn and of lawful age:

Question by Mr. Rice’s counsel:

You will state, Mr. Hamilton, your age and residence, and how long you have been acquainted with John M. Rice, the member elect to the forty-first Congress; and if you saw him in this county in the fall of 1861; were you frequently with him, and on intimate terms, or not?

A. My age is fifty, and I am acquainted with John M. Rice, and seen him several times in the year 1861; I live in the county of Pike; I was with John M. Rice several times in the fall of 1861, and we were on intimate terms with each other.

By same: Q. Were you acquainted with his character among the rebel officers and soldiers, or those called rebels, in the fall of 1861; if so, what did they say of him about assisting, or not assisting, them in recruiting, &c.?

A. After John M. Rice returned, I have heard the soldiers and officers abuse him for not aiding them; and it was the talk among the officers and soldiers that John M. Rice came along on purpose to give himself up.

By same: Q. Was you in the town of Pikeville at the time General John S. Williams and command was there, and at the time of Colonel John Dils being captured and taken from thence off to prison; if so, did you see John M. Rice that day; did he have a pistol fastened around him; how long did they keep Colonel Dils in prison after his arrest before they started off with them?

A. I was in the town of Pikeville when Colonel John S. Williams was there, and the same day that John Dils was arrested, and I saw John M. Rice during the time that Williams was there. I never seen said Rice with any weapons of any kind; he was on the run when there was any news that there was danger, and he was hard to keep up with.

By same: Q. Did he at any time appear to be subject to the control of the rebels, or to give aid or comfort to them; or was it not a fact he was the first on the scare, and from the condition of the country a prudent man always traveled with company, or along with armed men, for protection?

A. If he ever did I never knew it, nor never heard of it; when he was inside of the rebel lines, it was for his own protection. When he got out of danger, he never staid with the army, or had anything to do with it, to my knowledge, and I made several runs with him; and from John Rice’s conduct and conversation before he came down to Sandy, I thought he was coming down on purpose to be taken by the Yankees; and further this deponent saith not. N. HAMILTON.

The deposition of LUCAS B. SWORD, taken at the same time and place, of lawful age, and first duly sworn.

Question by the counsel for John M. Rice:

Mr. Sword, you will please state your age, residence, how far you reside from the town of Pikeville, Ky. State also if you were acquainted with John M. Rice, member elect to the forty-first Congress of the United States for the ninth district of Kentucky; if so, how long have you known him?

A. I am sixty-two, and live three miles above the town of Pikeville, and am well acquainted with John M. Rice, and have known him for some twenty years.

By same: Q. Was you at the mouth of Mud Creek or near there, and in sight of A.W. Hatcher, at the time John M. Rice was arrested by Martin Thornbury and others, in January 1862? if so, state who was along with you; and you will also state if you, Rice, or those with you belonged to the rebels or not; state what you know about it.

A. I was at the widow Hatcher’s, opposite Anthony Hatcher’s, and seen Thornbury and others arrest John M. Rice, or seen them go into the house where Rice was, and seen Thornbury, I thought, and some other man, go across the ridge to James Cecil’s after Rice’s horse, and seen them leave Anthony Hatcher’s with John M. Rice on his horse; this was in January 1862; myself and Harrison Ratliff was the only men that was there, except two of Witcher’s men passed by while we were there, who just passed by without stopping. Ratliff and myself just went down to Hatcher’s on a visit, and to hear how the fight came off at Middle Creek. I never belonged to the rebel service at that time nor since. Harrison Ratliff did not belong to the army at that time.

By same: Q. You will state your opportunities of knowing John M. Rice’s conduct in the fall of 1861, and prior to his arrest. State your neighborship, your association, and travels with him during the fall. If you saw him with arms, state it. If he in any way gave aid and comfort to the rebellion, state what he done. And also if you know what was his standing among the rebels, and their opinion expressed as to his trip down the Sandy; and his anxiety to go home; and his information from his family and friends— state what you know.

A. I was frequently with him in the fall of 1861, and prior to that time. We was neighbor to each other, and was my lawyer and attorney-at-law, and our family often visited each other; and during the fall of 1861 we had a run out, when John S. Williams and his army left Pikeville. We both left before Williams and keep ahead of them. Rice outrun me. If John M. Rice ever give aid or comfort to the rebel army, I never knew it. Some of the rebel soldiers talk about killing him for not going into the army, and said that they was glad that the Yankees had taken him; and said they would be glad that they would send him off. I heard that he got a letter from his wife not to come home, for if he did, he would be in danger of being arrested and sent off to prison; and during all the time I was with John M. Rice in the fall of 1861. I never seen him have any weapons of any kind, and I don’t think that I ever seen him have any weapons of any kind. I was in the town of Pikeville when Williams was there, when John Dils was taken a prisoner, and I never knew him to carry any pistol or large knife or arms of any kind.

By same: Q. Was, or not, there great excitement in the Sandy Valley during the fall of 1861; that they-old, young, male and females-was scared off; that it was dangerous, so regarded, for men to travel by themselves; that they went in squads or several together, some sought the protection of the soldiers to make their trips who had nothing to do with either army?

A. It is true that there was great excitement in the Sandy Valley during the fall of 1861, and old men and young men, male and female, left their homes. Some taken all their family and run off. Some of them thought it best to go with squads of armed men for their protection and safety.

By same: Q. You will examine copy of record of the Pike circuit court-marked X, being an indictment of the commonwealth of Kentucky against Martin Thornbury. You will state if that is the same Thornbury that lives in this county, and witness, as so stated, for the contestant Zeigler, and were you or not foreman of the grand jury that found said indictment?

A. It is the same Thornbury that was indicted in the Pike circuit court, and I was the foreman of the grand jury that found said indictment, and mentioned in paper marked X, showed me, and whom, I am told, is a witness in this cause, and is the only Martin Thornbury that I know of. He is the same Thornbury that arrested John M. Rice.

By same: Q. Are you acquainted with the general moral character of said Martin Thornbury in the neighborhood and community he is known? If so, is his general moral character good or bad?

A. I am acquainted with it, and it is bad; further this deponent saith not. L.B. SWORD.

STATE OF KENTUCKY, Pike County, 88: I, William Weddington, presiding judge of the Pike County court, do certify that the depositions of Hibbard Williamson, Silas W. Ratliff, James Honaker, Nelson Hamilton, and Lucas B. Sword was taken before me at the clerk’s office of the Pike County court, in the town of Pikeville, Kentucky, on the 18th day of March, 1869, in pursuance to a notice hereto annexed, to be read as evidence on the part of John M. Rice, in the contested election case of John L. Ziegler, contestant, contesting the right of John M. Rice to his seat in the forty-first Congress of the United States from the ninth congressional district of Kentucky; and I further do certify that the said Williamson, Ratliff, Honaker, Hamilton, and Sword were first sworn by me that the evidence they should give should be the truth, the whole truth, and nothing but the truth; the same was each read over to them and subscribed by them, each to their respective deposition, in my presence; the deposition or statements of Hibbard Williamson was written by himself in my presence, and the other depositions of Ratliff, Honaker, Hamilton, and Sword was written by said Hibbard Williamson, in my presence and the presence of each witness, under my directions. The testimony of said witnesses, together with the questions proposed by the contestee, was reduced to writing by my direction, in the presence of the agent, J.M. Rice, and those in attendance, and duly attested by the witnesses respectively. In testimony thereof, I hereunto set my hand and seal, this 18th March, 1869. WM. WEDDINGTON, J.P.C.C. [L.S.]

Fees of witness Fees of judges Seals Total …… $4, 3, 2, 9. STATE OF KENTUCKY, County of Pike, 88: I, Hibbard Williamson, clerk of the Pike County court, do certify that William Weddington, before whom the foregoing deposition was taken, is the judge of the Pike County court, duly commissioned and qualified, and the above is his signature, and as such is entitled to full faith and credit. Given under my hand and seal of office this the 18th day of March, 1869. [L.S.] HIBBARD WILLIAMSON, Clerk of the Pike County Court.

Notice. Colonel John L. Zeigler: You are hereby notified that I will, on the 19th and 20th days of April, 1869, at the county court clerk’s office, in the town of Paintsville, Johnson County, Kentucky, proceed to take the depositions of James Franklin, James E. Stewart, Daniel Hager, sr., and James Stafford, all residents of the county of Johnson, State of Kentucky, and before Hiram E. Conley, judge of the Johnson County court; also, on the 26th and 27th days of April, 1869, at the clerk’s office of the Floyd County court, in the town of Prestonsburg, Kentucky, will proceed to take the depositions of Robert S. Huey, Green M. Wilber, Joseph M. Davidson, Evan Jones, and Thomas Ford, all residents of the county of Floyd, State of Kentucky, and before James P. Harris, judge of the Floyd County court; also, on the 3d and 4th days of May 1869, at the clerk’s office of the Pike County court, in the town of Pikesville, Kentucky, proceed to take the depositions of Nelson Hamilton, Hibbard Williamson, L. B. Swords, S. W. Ratliff, James Honaker, Thomas O. Marrs, James L. Ratliff, Joseph E. Ratliff, Isaac Robinson, Thomas J. Owings, Jeremiah Osburn, A.J. Hatcher, David Powell, James W. Cecil, Lindsey Maynard, Harry Ford, and Stephen M. Ferguson, all of the within witnesses are residents of the county of Pike and State of Kentucky, and taken before O.C. Bowles, notary public of Pike County; also, on the 12th and 13th days of April 1869, at the law office of K.F. Prichard, in the town of Louisa, Kentucky, proceed to take the depositions of Milton Freese, George W. Johnson, M.B. Gable, Thomas Mc-Kinster, William Vinson, R.F. Vinson, Fleming McHenry, Green McHenry, Pharris Hale, Samuel Short, Samuel Vinson, Ralph Booton, Stephen Loar, Thomas Wallice, and P.J. Livingston, all residents of the county of Lawrence and State of Kentucky, and to be taken before John M. Clayton, judge of the Lawrence County court; also, on the 10th and 11th days of May, 1869, at the law office of George N. Brown, in the town of Catlettsburg, Kentucky, before James D. Jones, notary public for said county, proceed to take the depositions of John S. Mahar, John W. Hampton, and John B. Hatcher, residents of the county of Boyd and State of Kentucky; also, on the 17th day of May, 1869, at the Louisville Hotel, in the city of Louisville, Kentucky, before some notary public for the county of Jefferson, proceed to take the deposition of General Humphrey Marshall, resident of said city, and county of Jefferson, Kentucky. The said depositions will be taken at the several times and places named, to be read as evidence upon the trial of the contest, on notice of yourself contesting my seat as member elect to the forty-first Congress of the United States from the ninth congressional district of Kentucky. This March 31, 1869. JOHN M. RICE. Depositions.

The depositions of Pharas Hale, Fleming McHenry, S. Short, and Stephen G. Loar, taken on the 12th and 13th days of April, 1869, at the law office of K.F. Prichard, in the town of Louisa, Kentucky, to be read as evidence in a case of contest for a seat in the forty-first Congress of the United States between John L. Zeigler, contestant, and John M. Rice, contestee, from the ninth congressional district of Kentucky.

 PHARAS HALE, being of lawful age and duly sworn, deposeth as follows:

Question. State your age and residence.

Answer. I am thirty-eight years old, and I reside in Lawrence County, Kentucky, and have resided here about twenty-five years.

Q. Are you acquainted with John M. Rice, and if so how long have you known him?

A. I am. I have known him about twenty-five years.

Q. Were you connected with the federal army during the late rebellion; if so, how long and in what capacity did you serve?

A. I enlisted in the federal army in October 1861, and was orderly sergeant about four months. I was then promoted to second lieutenant, and resigned in 1863.

Q. From the time you enlisted, how long was you engaged in campaigning in the counties bordering on the Big Sandy River, viz: Lawrence, Johnson, Floyd, and Pike?

A. I was engaged in campaigning in those counties about six months.

Q. During that time, do you know of John M. Rice being guilty of any act of disloyalty toward the government of the United States?

A. I do not.

Q. Was you a member of the Sixty-eighth regiment of enrolled militia, of the State of Kentucky; if so, state what position you occupied and how long said regiment was in active service, and how often it was called into the service of the United States during the late rebellion, and at what times?

A. I was the adjutant of the regiment. I was in the service the first call about fourteen days; the second call about sixty-five days. The first call was in April 1864; the second call was in May 1864.

Q. State if the contestee, John M. Rice, was a member of that regiment; if so, state the length of time he served, and his general standing with the officers and members of the regiment.

A. He was a member of the regiment; he served the term of both calls, and was highly respected by the officers and men of the regiment.

Cross-examined:

Q. What regiment of United States troops did you belong to, and by whom was the regiment commanded?

A. I belonged to the Fourteenth regiment of infantry; it was commanded first by Colonel L.T. Moore, and then by Colonel John C. Cochran, and then by Colonel G.W. Gallup.

Q. In what capacity did Mr. Rice serve in the Fourteenth Kentucky regiment?

A. He never served in the Fourteenth regiment.

Q. In what regiment did Mr. Rice serve, by whom was the regiment commanded, and in what capacity did Mr. Rice serve?

A. In the Sixty-eighth enrolled militia; the regiment was commanded by Colonel Thomas McKinster; Mr. Rice served as quartermaster in the first call; in the second call he was quartermaster sergeant.

Q. Where was Mr. Rice when the confederate troops were assembled first at Prestonsburg, in Floyd County, Kentucky, under the command of either General John S. Williams, or General Humphrey Marshal, or Colonel Ficklin?

A. I do not know.

Q. Where was Mr. Rice in the summer and fall of 1861 and 1862?

A. I do not know.

Q. Was Mr. Rice ever held as a prisoner of the United States by the military authorities thereof, and if so, when?

A. I do not know whether he was held as a prisoner or not; I saw him at Paintsville in January 1862, while Colonel Garfield was in command.

Q. Was Mr. Rice ever a member of the general assembly, from Pike County, Kentucky; and if so, at what time?

A. He was, in the year 1867, a member from Lawrence County, and I have heard that he was a member from Pike County at one time.

Q. Do you know of Mr. Rice ever being with the confederate forces during the late disturbances or rebellion?

A. I do not know that he was.

Q. Who called out the regiment of militia; and where did they serve?

A. First call was by the governor, the second call, I think, was by General Burbridge; they served in the spring and summer of 1863 and 1864, at Louisa, Kentucky.

Q. Did Mr. Rice, by word or opinion, give encouragement to the cause of secession in the year 1861 or 1862?

A. He never did to me, or anyone else that I know of.

Q. Was it not General White who called out the regiment of militia?

A. I think not. And further this deponent saith not. PHARAS HALE.

FLEMING MCHENRY, of lawful age, being duly sworn, deposes as follows:

Question. State your age and residence.

Answer. I believe I am about thirty-eight years of age; I reside in Louisa, Lawrence County, Kentucky.

Q. State if you are acquainted with the contestee, John M. Rice; if so, how long you have known him.

A. I am; I have known him near twenty-five years.

Q. State if you was at Prestonsburg, Kentucky, while a confederate force was being organized there under Colonels Ficklin and John S. Williams, in the year 1861.

A. I was.

Q. Was John M. Rice at Prestonsburg at that time?

A. I think I saw John M. Rice there about that time.

Q. Do you know of said John M. Rice acting in any way in concert with the confederate forces there, or giving them aid in any way?

A. I cannot say that I did.

Q. Did you, about that time, hear persons belonging to the confederate force censure said John M. Rice for not joining the confederate army and for not encouraging others to do so? (Question objected to.)

A. I do not remember that I heard any talk of that kind.

Q. Had said Rice been in any way connected with the confederate army at that time, were your opportunities as good for knowing it as those of any one else?

A. I think Í would have as likely known it as anyone else; if he had, I did not know it; he was stopping at the hotel; I do not recollect how long he remained there; I do not think he was there very long at any one time; I believe I saw him next at Pike.

Q. Were the confederate troops at Pike when you saw Mr. Rice there, and did he follow or accompany the confederates to that point in their movement?

A. They were there when I saw him. I do not know whether he went before or after them.

Q. What was Mr. Rice doing there, and how long did he stay there, and where did he go from there; and did he follow or accompany the confederate troops south of Pike; and what encouragement, if any, either by word or opinion, did Mr. Rice give the confederate forces?

A. I do not know what his business was there. I do not remember how long he stayed there. I do not remember that I saw him south of Pike. I do not know of any encouragement that he gave the confederate forces.

Q. Was Mr. Rice at Abingdon, Virginia, with the confederate troops?

A. I do not know; I was not there myself.

Q. How far south were you with the rebels?

A. I was as far as Gladeville, Virginia.

Q. Were you in the interest of the confederate troops, or of the United States forces, at that time?

A. I was not connected with either army, but my sympathies were with the confederates.

Q. Did Mr. Rice seek office of the confederate authorities, or hold office under the same, or recruit soldiers for the confederacy of rebels, or countenance persons engaged in hostility to the United States?

A. Mr. Rice did not seek office of the confederate authorities that I know of, or hold office under them, nor recruit soldiers, that I know of, for the confederate army. I do not have any knowledge of any countenance he gave to persons engaged in hostilities to the government of the United States.

Q. Was Mr. Rice a member of the general assembly of Kentucky, from Pike, at the time the rebellion began; and was he, when you were with the confederates, on friendly terms with them?

A. I think he was a member of the legislature. He was on friendly terms with them, as far as I know.

Q. When did Mr. Rice return to his home at Louisa, and under what circumstances did he return?

A. I cannot state the time he came home. I was not here when he came. I do not know under what circumstances he came back under.

Q. Was Mr. Rice ever a prisoner of the United States; and if so, when was he captured, and when returned?

A. He was under arrest at Louisa. I cannot give the date of his arrest, or the time of his release; he was released at Cincinnati in the year 1863, and arrested in Louisa in June 1863.

Re-examined:

Q State whether or not a great number of the confederate forces at Prestonsburg were not the personal friends and acquaintances of John M. Rice previous to the rebellion.

A. They were.

Q. State if Mr. Rice had been at his home in Louisa, Kentucky, for more than a year previous to his arrest in 1863, and if any others were arrested at or about the same time as himself; and if so, how many? State the manner of his confinement during the time he was under arrest. State if Louisa was the headquarters of the military district of Eastern Kentucky, and if the commanding officer of said district staid at that place from the year 1862 until the close of the war. (This question is objected to as introducing new matter upon the re-examination.)

A. He was mostly at home; he may have at times been from home for a short time, passing to and fro as he does now; there was several arrested at the same time, I do not know how many; there was a good many arrested at the same time; he had the limits of the camp. There was federal troops stationed here the most of the time, and perhaps all the time. The commanding officers were here during the time the troops were here. And further this deponent saith not. FLEMING MCHENRY.

Adjourned until to-morrow morning 9 o’clock.

Met pursuant to adjournment, April 13, 1869. JNO. M. CLAYTON, J.L.C.C.

SAMUEL SHORT, of lawful age, being duly sworn, deposes as follows:

Question. State your age and residence, whether or not you are acquainted with contestee, John M. Rice; and if so, how long you have been acquainted with him. State your place of residence in the years 1860 and 1861, and how long you had resided there anterior to that time.

Answer. My age is fifty-six years. My residence is Louisa, Kentucky. I am acquainted with John M. Rice, and have been ever since he was a little boy. My place of residence in the years of 1860 and 1861 was in this place, or within the vicinity. I have lived here up to that time, from 1838, except one or two years. I lived at the Falls of Blaine, called about nine miles from this place; the time I lived at the Falls of Blaine was about the years of 1847 and 1848.

Q. State about what time John M. Rice removed from Pikeville, Pike County, Kentucky, to Louisa, Kentucky, and how long he had resided in Pikeville previous to his removal therefrom; and also where his place of residence was previous to his going to Pikeville.

A. I think John M. Rice moved here in May 1861, from Pikeville, Kentucky. I think he had resided in Pikeville, before he removed here, from four to six years, and perhaps longer. His place of residence previous to his going to Pikeville was at Louisa, Kentucky. He was raised here.

Q. Do you remember of the contestee, John M. Rice, on his way to the general assembly of Kentucky, in December 1860, or January 1861, having this conversation in the presence of John Pigg, yourself, and wife, at your house, or on the river bank, viz: “That he intended to split the Union wide open, in the middle.” Did you ever hear him have such conversation in the presence of any person? Did you ever hear him advocate the doctrine of secession?

A. I do not remember of John M. Rice having such a conversation at any place in the presence of John Pigg, or anyone else. I do not recollect that John Pigg and John M. Rice was ever at my house together at any time. I do not recollect that I ever heard him advocate the cause of secession; we might have talked about the question, but I do not recollect of his ever advocating it.

Q. Was Mr. Rice a frequent visitor at your house in 1861; and from that time until the close of the war, were he and yourself on intimate terms? Had you a good opportunity for knowing the fact had he been an advocate of the doctrine of secession? (Question objected to as leading.)

A. Mr. Rice was a frequent visitor at my house in 1861, and we were always on intimate terms, and were frequently together. I had a good opportunity of knowing if he had been an advocate of the doctrine of secession.

Q. State if Louisa, Kentucky, was, after October, 1862, the headquarters of the department of eastern Kentucky up to the close of the war, and if the commanders of that department made it their headquarters during that time. State if, from October 1862 to the close of the war there was always a force of federal troops at that point. State if, anterior to that time, there was a federal force there, with the exception of one or two months.

A. Louisa, in 1862, was the headquarters of the department from that time up to the close of the war. The commanders made this place their headquarters. They may have been away for a short time, but this place was regarded as their headquarters. From after October 1862 to the close of the war, there was always federal troops here. Anterior to that time there was a time or two that there was no troops here, for how long I do not recollect.

Q. State if you are acquainted with the handwriting of Colonel J.A. Garfield; if so, state if the exhibit herewith filed, marked G, dated at Paintsville, Kentucky, January 14, 1862, signed by J. A. Garfield, colonel commanding brigade, is in his (Garfield’s) handwriting.

(EXHIBIT G. HEADQUARTERS EIGHTEENTH BRIGADE, Paintville, Kentucky, January 14, 1862. Mr. John M. Rice, of Louisa, Kentucky, having pledged himself not to aid or abet, directly or indirectly, the confederate forces in the present war, is hereby released on his parole, and granted safe conduct into the camps and through the lines of Union troops, subject to all proper guard and police regulations. By order of Colonel J.A. Garfield, commanding brigade.)

A. I am not acquainted with his handwriting.

Cross-examined: W.H. CLAPP, Assistant Adjutant General:

Q. What relationship (if any) exists between you and John M. Rice, either by affinity or consanguinity?

A. We are brothers-in-law.

Q. Was Mr. Rice a member of the general assembly of Kentucky, in the year 1860–61, from the county of Pike, Kentucky?

A. He was.

Q. Did Mr. Rice ever bear arms against the United States? Did he ever give aid, counsel, countenance or encouragement, to persons engaged in armed hostility to the United States? Did he ever seek office, or attempt to exercise office, under any authority or power hostile or inimical to the United States? Did he ever give or yield a support to any pretended government, authority or power, or constitution, within the United States, hostile or inimical thereto?

A. Mr. Rice never bore arms against the United States, that I know of. He never gave encouragement, counsel, or aid, to persons engaged in armed hostility to the United States, that I know of. I never saw him with any rebel troops that I know of. He never did seek office, or attempt to exercise office, under any power hostile to the United States. He never gave or yielded support to any pretended government authority, or power, or constitution, within the United States, hostile or inimical thereto, that I know of.

Q. Was Mr. Rice, prior to January 14, 1862, with the rebels, either at Prestonsburg, Kentucky, or Pikeville, Kentucky, or in Virginia; and what was he arrested for, and for which he was released by the order known as Exhibit G?

A. I know nothing about it, only from hearsay.

Q. Where was Mr. Rice prior to January 14, 1862, for the three or four months next before January 14, 1862? Was he at his home in Louisa, Kentucky, during that time?

A. I suppose about that time he was from home. He told me that he was in Prestonsburg and Pike. I don’t recollect that he told me he was in Virginia.

Re-examined:

Q. After the return home of Mr. Rice in January 1862, did he remain at his home in Louisa, Kentucky, until the end of the war, except when absent on business?

A. I think he did. And further this deponent saith not. S. SHORT.

STEPHEN G. LOAR, of lawful age, being duly sworn, deposes and says:

Question. State your age and residence; state if you are acquainted with the contestee, John M. Rice; and if so, how long you have known him.

Answer. My age, twenty-eight years; residence, Wayne County, State of West Virginia; I have known John M. Rice ten or twelve years.

Q. State if you were present at the house of Anthony Hatcher, in Floyd County, Kentucky, at the time of the arrest of John M. Rice, in January, 1862; state also if you was arrested at the same time; state who composed the party making the arrest, and whether they were citizens or home guards, or soldiers of the federal army; state where Rice was taken to from the house of Hatcher, and in whose company he was; state if you rode with John M. Rice from Hatcher’s to Paintville, Kentucky; state if Martin Thornsbury, on the road between Hatcher’s and Paintville, at any time, had a conversation with John M. Rice; state if, at any time, you heard Rice say that he had a commission from the confederate government, or had belonged to, or acted in con- cert with, any force in arms against the United States government, or that he expected to. (Question objected as to the form.)

A. I was present at the house of Anthony Hatcher at the time of the arrest of John M. Rice; I was arrested at the same time. Martin Thornbury and Dock Ferguson were present, and there was a good many others, some twenty or twenty-five, composing the party making the arrest. I do not know whether they were soldiers or not; it is my impression they were home guards. Rice was taken to Paintville from the house of Anthony Hatcher. I rode with Rice from Hatcher’s to Paintville; there was some other persons present in the company, but do not now recollect who they were. I do not think that Martin Thornbury had any conversation with John M. Rice on the road from Hatcher’s to Paintsville. I never heard John M. Rice say that he had a commission from the confederate government, or had belonged to, or acted in concert with, any force in arms against the government of the United States, or that he expected to.

Q. If there had been any conversation between John M. Rice and Martin Thornbury, on the road from Hatcher’s to Paintsville, in which Rice had said that he had a commission from the confederate government, or belonged to the confederate army, from your close proximity to Rice during the whole journey, would you have been likely to have heard it? State how Rice and yourself were compelled to ride during the journey.

A. I think if there had been any conversation of that kind, I would have heard it. Rice and I rode down, side by side, unless it was where the road was very narrow; then we would ride one behind the other.

Q. In what part of the line of march was Martin Thornbury, and in what part of the line were Rice and yourself?

A. Rice and I were in the front; Martin Thornbury was in the rear of the column.

Cross-examined:

Q. What army, if any, were you in?

A. I did not belong to any army at that time; I afterwards belonged to the Tenth Kentucky confederate regiment. I think it was in the fall of 1863 I became a member of the regiment.

Q. Where were you residing at the time you and Mr. Rice were arrested at the house of Hatcher?

A. At James Layne’s, about a mile below Hatcher’s.

Q. What were you doing at the time you were arrested; what was Mr. Rice doing; were there any rebel troops there at the time; was Mr. Rice scouting with the rebel forces; was he armed; had he, prior to that time, been with the rebels, and did you hear all the conversation he had on the way to Paintville?

A. At the time I was arrested, I had gone up to see Anthony Hatcher, who was wounded; Rice was with me and went there for the same purpose. There were no rebel troops there at the time, that I know of, unless David Powel [sic] was, and I don’t think he was; Mr. Rice was not at that time, nor ever, to my knowledge, before or after that time, scouting with the rebels. I do not know whether Mr. Rice had been with the rebels before that time or not. Mr. Rice, at the time of his arrest, had a small pistol. I do not recollect that I heard all the conversation of Rice; I was close enough to hear it on our way down.

Q. How long had you and Mr. Rice been together, next before his arrest; and what became of you after the arrest? State the particulars of your release.

A. I do not recollect how long before that time he had been with me; he staid at Mrs. Layne’s the night before our arrest. I was let out on a parole of honor, and I think he was let out the same way by Colonel Garfield.

Q. Which of the armies was nearest the place where you were arrested; and where were the confederate forces?

A. I don’t know, but report says they were on Beaver, on the opposite side of the river from where we were- about eight or ten miles. The federal army was located about twenty-five miles from where we were.

Q. Were any scouts or persons sent out from Hatcher’s by Mr. Rice to observe or watch the movements of the federal forces?

A. There was not, that I know of.

Q. Was Mr. Rice with the rebels at any time before his arrest; did he aid them, countenance them, or encourage them; did he claim protection as a confederate officer?

A. If Mr. Rice was with the rebels at any time before his arrest, I did not know it. He did not aid them, countenance, or encourage them, that I know of. He did not claim protection as a confederate officer, that I know of.

Q. Which of the hostile forces did you and Mr. Rice wish to conquer, the rebel or Yankee?

A. I do not know Mr. Rice’s feelings; I know my own; I desired the rebels to conquer.

Q. Was Hatcher a confederate or federal; and by whom was he wounded; and where was he wounded?

A. Hatcher was not a soldier. He was wounded at the battle of Ivy Mountain by the federal soldiers.

Re-examined:

Q. State at what points the federal troops were at the time of the arrest of Rice and yourself; and how far distant they were from the house of Anthony Hatcher.

A. The federal troops, or a portion of them, at the time of the arrest of Rice and myself, were at and Middle Creek. Prestonsburg is some nine or ten miles from Anthony Hatcher’s; and I now correct my former statement in regard to the distance of the federal troops from Mr. Hatcher’s. And further this deponent saith not.

STATE OF KENTUCKY, Lawrence County, sct: STEPHEN G. LOAR.

I, John M. Clayton, judge of Lawrence County, do certify that the foregoing depositions of Pharis Hale, Flemming McHenry, S. Short, and Stephen G. Loar was taken before me, and was read to and subscribed by them in my presence, in the action of contest mentioned in the caption, the said Pharis Hale, Flemming McHenry, S. Short, and Stephen G. Loar having been first sworn by me that the evidence they should give in the action of contest should be the truth, the whole truth, and nothing but the truth, and their statements reduced to writing by me in their presence. John L. Zeigler and his attorney, and John M. Rice and his attorney, were present at the examination. Given under my hand this 13th day of April, 1869. JNO. M. CLAYTON, J.L.C.

Notice. Col. JOHN L. ZEIGLER: You are hereby notified that I will, on the 19th and 20th days of April, 1869, at the county court clerk’s office, in the town of Paintsville, Johnson County, Kentucky, proceed to take the depositions of James Franklin, James E. Stewart, Daniel Hager, sr. and James Stafford, all residents of the county of Johnson, State of Kentucky, and before Hiram E. Conley, judge of the Johnson County court. Also on the 26th and 27th days of April, 1869, at the clerk’s office of the Floyd County court, in the town of Prestonsburg, Kentucky, will proceed to take the depositions of Robert S. Henry, Green M. Witten, Joseph M. Davidson, Evan Jones, and Thomas Ford, all residents of the county of Floyd, State of Kentucky, and before James P. Harris, judge of the Floyd County court. Also on the 3d and 4th days of May, 1869, at the clerk’s office of the Pike County court, in the town of Pikeville, Kentucky, proceed to take the depositions of Nelson Hamilton, Hibbard Williamson, L.B. Swords, S.W. Ratliff, James Honaker, Thomas O. Marrs, James L. Ratliff, Joseph E. Ratliff, Isaac Robinson, Thomas J. Owings, Jeremiah Osborn, A.J. Hatcher, David Powell, James W. Cecil, Lindsey Maynard, Harry Ford, and Stephen M. Ferguson. All of the within witnesses are residents of the county of Pike and State of Kentucky, and taken before O.C. Bowles, notary public for Pike County. Also on the 12th and 13th days of April, 1869, at the law office of K.F. Prichard, in the town of Louisa, Kentucky, proceed to take the depositions of Milton Freese, George W. Johnson, M.B. Goble, Thomas McKinster, William Vinson, R.F. Vinson, Fleming McHenry, Green McHenry, Pharris Hale, Samuel Short, Samuel Vinson, Ralph Booton, Stephen Loar, Thomas Willice and P. J. Livingston, all residents of the county of Lawrence, and State of Kentucky, and to be taken before John M. Clayton, judge of the Lawrence County court. Also on the 10th and 11th days of May, 1869, at the law office of Geo. N. Brown, in the town of Callettsburg, Kentucky, before James D. Jones, notary public for said county, proceed to take the depositions of John S. Mahan, John W. Hampton, and John B. Hatcher, residents of the county of Boyd and State of Kentucky. Also on the 17th day of May, 1869, at the Louisville Hotel, in the city of Louisville, Kentucky, before some notary public for the county of Jefferson, proceed to take the deposition of General Humphrey Marshall, of said city and county of Jefferson, Kentucky. The said depositions will be taken at the several times and places named, to be read as evidence upon the trial of the contest, on notice of yourself, contesting my seat as member elect to the forty-first Congress of the United States, from the 9th congressional district in Kentucky, this March 31, 1869. JOHN M. RICE.

Deposition. The deposition of JAMES E. STEWART, taken at the clerk’s office of the Johnson County court, on the 19th of April, 1869, agreeable to a notice hereto annexed, to be read as evidence on the part of John M. Rice, on the trial of the contest of John L. Zeigler contesting the seat of John M. Rice, member elect to the forty-first Congress of the United States.

The deponent, James E. Stewart, being of lawful age, sworn, &c.:

Question by attorney for John M. Rice. You will state, Mr. Stewart, your age, occupation, residence, and how long you have known John M. Rice, and if your acquaintance has been intimate. You will specify specially where you resided in 1860-61-62, and if you saw and knew John M. Rice in the fall of 1861?

A. I am 36 years old past, a lawyer by profession, reside in Paintsville, Johnson County, Kentucky, and have so resided since 31st of December, 1854, except from September 1861 to April 1865, during which time I resided a part of the time near mouth of Johns Creek, and a part of the time on a farm about two miles from Paintsville, both places being in Johnson County. I have known John M. Rice since 1853, as I now recollect, and that acquaintance has been intimate since about 1855. I saw and knew him, and was intimate with him in 1860-61.

By same: Q. You will state if you, during the fall of 1861, were frequently with the rebel or confederate forces on the Sandy. You will state the character and standing that John M. Rice had with the rebels in arms and the southern sympathizers, as to his course in regard to the war. You will state your opportunities to know of John M. Rice taking part with the rebel forces or his giving them aid and comfort; and you will also state your knowledge of his giving aid and comfort, and his conduct in opposition to aiding them. (John L. Zeigler objects and excepts to so much of the above question that relates to the character and standing of John M. Rice with the rebels in arms and the southern sympathizers, in regard to John M. Rice’s conduct in the war. The same is incompetent and irrelevant, and not embraced in the notice of contest and answer.)

A. In the fall of 1861-September, and perhaps October-I was inside the rebel camp in Floyd County, Kentucky, and again with them, or some of them, at Gladeville, Wise County, Virginia, in November of that year; then inside their camp in Floyd and Johnson counties in December 1861. I cannot now call to mind that I heard the rebel soldiers say much about him. I was not connected with them in any way, being only among them, in and out, on business. I heard many hard things said against Mr. Rice by sympathizers, because he did not go into the army; do not recollect that I ever heard a rebel soldier say anything about it. I saw John M. Rice inside the rebel camp at Prestonsburg, Floyd County, while they were there. He was stopping at a hotel, and, so far as I observed, had nothing to do with the rebel army. I do not know of his giving them aid and comfort, except that he was recognized as a sympathizer with them. I saw him at Gladeville, Virginia, in November 1861. He was then ahead of the army, in the general stampede from Kentucky, there being a great number of skedaddling citizens of Kentucky then at that point-men, women and children. He only remained there a few days and left, and I met him again at Abingdon, Washington County, Virginia. He was stopping at a hotel at that point, there being no rebel camp in that vicinity at that time. I was there with him some two or three days, and left him there when I returned to Kentucky. I never saw him in their camp aiding them in any way.

Cross-examined by John L. Zeigler:

Q. Were you acquainted with Samuel W. Porter; if yea, how long did you know him? State your means of acquaintance with him?

A. I was very well acquainted with S.W. Porter, and knew him well from 1856 or 1857 to his death, in 1867; resided about twelve miles from him during the most of that time.

By same: Q. Was he generally called Walker Porter?

A. He was.

By same: Q. State if John M. Rice and Walker Porter resembled each other?

A. They were about the same in height; but any resemblance of features or carriage, I don’t think they did.

By same: Q. Could they be easily distinguished apart, by a man well acquainted with them, a distance of twenty yards?

A. Front view, I think they could; no intervening obstructions.

By same: Q. State if, at any time you saw John M. Rice inside of the rebel lines, did you see him armed.

A. I don’t recollect that I ever saw him have any arms except at Gladeville, the time I met him there ahead of the army; he then had two small pistols under his clothes.

By same: Q. In what way did he carry the two pistols? Did he carry them in a belt or parcels?

A. I will not be sure; but my best recollection is, they were in a belt.

By same: Q. Describe the belt.

A. I cannot.

By same: And was you with him during the whole of the months of October, November, December 1861 and January 1862?

A. I was not.

By same: Q. Then could he have aided the rebellion during that time, and you not have known it?

A. He could.

By same: Q. Is it or not a fact, during the occupation of the town of Prestonsburg, in the fall of 1861, by the rebels, that John M. Rice was frequently about headquarters, and advising with those in command?

A. If ever I met him at headquarters, I don’t recollect it.

By same: Q. State if at any time or place you know of John M. Rice advising or encouraging any one to engage in the rebellion?

A. I don’t recollect that I ever did.

By same: Q. What is your best impression?

A. My best recollection now is that I never did.

By same: Q. State if, when in Virginia in 1861, you knowed of John M. Rice trying to get any one to go with him to Russellville, Kentucky, to join the then existing provisional government of Kentucky?

A. I don’t.

By same: Q. State if you knowed at any time of his contemplating taking command of a company of rebel soldiers at Hager Hill, then being recruited?

A. I don’t.

By same: Q. Is it or not a fact, in the fall of 1861, John M. Rice was a man of popularity and influence in the Sandy Valley, where he resided; and when at Prestonsburg and other places inside of the rebels’ lines, was he or not a warm advocate of the southern cause and the then existing rebellion?

A. Mr. Rice was a man of popularity and influence in the Sandy Valley. So far as I ever heard him talk, it was in favor of the South; but so far as I now recollect, he said but little about it at that time.

By same: Q. State your own position on the then existing troubles.

A. I sympathized with the southern people, but had no connection whatever with those in arms, or that was aiding the rebellion.

By same: Q. State if at any time during the war you was arrested by the military authorities of the United States; and if so, was you sent to a military prison; if so, at what places was you confined?

A. In 1862 I was arrested by said authorities at the instance of prejudiced acquaintances, and upon false testimony was sent to Camp Chase.

By same: Q. State what was the conversation of John M. Rice while in Virginia with you in 1861 in regard to the war; and did he or not express a warm desire for the success of the southern cause?

A. I have no recollection anything about what the topic of conversation was at that time.

Re-examined by Mr. Rice’s counsel:

Q. You will state, Mr. Stewart, your present position in the State of Kentucky as an officer, and how you obtained the office?

A. I am commonwealth’s attorney for the sixteenth judicial district of Kentucky, composed of the counties of Pike, Floyd, Johnson, Magoffin, Lawrence, Carter, and Boyd; was elected to that position by the people in August 1868, by a majority of near a thousand majority.

By same: Q. You have stated your association with John M. Rice, your acquaintance, intimacy, and his high standing in this section of the country. You will now say if, from that condition or knowledge you have of Mr. Rice, is it not more than a bare possibility he could have given aid and comfort to the rebellion without your knowledge; and you will state if you ever even heard from a creditable person, in the fall of 1861 or winter of 1862, of his giving them aid.

A. He could have given aid and comfort and I not know it, but never did in my presence. I never heard anyone say that they knew he gave aid and comfort. Further this deponent saith not. JAMES E. STEWART.

The further taking of these depositions is adjourned until tomorrow morning at ten o’clock. H.E. CONLEY, P.J.J.C.C. The contestant produced no further testimony on the 20th, day of adjournment. H.E. CONLEY, P.J.J.C.C. STATE OF KENTUCKY, Johnson County, sct.

I, H.E. Conley, judge of the Johnson County court, do certify that the foregoing deposition of James E. Stewart was taken at the clerk’s office of the Johnson County Court, on the 19th day of April, 1869, agreeably to the annexed notice, and for the purpose described in the caption; that the said Stewart was first sworn by me to tell the truth, the whole truth, and nothing but the truth. The statements were reduced to writing by witness in my presence, and read over by him in my presence and that of the parties and their attorneys, and signed by him. The contestant, John L. Zeigler, and contestee, John M. Rice, were present, each represented by their attorneys, to wit, John Harkins for Zeigler and G.N. Brown for Rice. In testimony thereof I hereunto set my hand as presiding judge of the Johnson County courts, to wit, this 20th April, 1869. H. E. CONLEY, J.J.C.C. Judge’s fee …. Witness’s claim … Judge’s fee paid by G.N. Brown, attorney for Rice. $1.

Notice. SIR: Take notice that I will, on the 10th, 11th, and 12th days of May next, at the law office of George N. Brown, in the town of Catlettsburg, Boyd County, Kentucky, take the depositions of Green M. Witten, of Floyd County, Kentucky, and General Daniel Hager, of Johnson County, Kentucky, (in addition to those I have heretofore notified you of my intention to take, at the same time and place,) to be read as evidence in my behalf on the trial of the contest, on notice of yourself contesting my right to a seat as member elect to the forty-first Congress of the United States from the ninth district of Kentucky. Mr. JOHN L. ZEIGLER. April 29, 1869. JOHN M. RICE.

Executed by delivering to John L. Zeigler a true copy of the within notice, this April 30, 1869. J.C. EASTHAM, Sheriff of Boyd County. STATE OF KENTUCKY, Boyd County, sct.: I, W.O. Hampton, clerk of the Boyd County court, in the State of Kentucky, do certify that J.C. Eastham, the officer who has executed the within notice, is now, and was at the time of executing the same, an acting sheriff of Boyd County, and that his signature thereto is genuine. Given under my hand and official seal this 30th day of April, 1869. [SEAL.] W.O. HAMPTON, Clerk.

SIR: Take notice that I will, upon the 10th, 11th, and 12th days of May next, (1869,) at the law office of George N. Brown, in town of Catlettsburg, Boyd County, Kentucky, take the depositions of John S. Mahan, John W. Hampton, John B. Hatcher, Randolph Botts, and George N. Brown, residents of the county of Boyd and State of Kentucky; and James D. Foster, resident of Greenup County, Kentucky, and Milton J. Freese, M.B. Goble, K.F. Prichard, Thomas McKinster, Leopold Frank, Charles Wilson, Graham Wilson, Ramsey Wilson, James Wellman, Calvin Wellman, Henry Stewart, R.H. Meek, James H. O’Brien, Thomas Wallace, Frank Wallace, Lewis Pool, G.W. Castle, John J. Jordan, and Jesse Jordan, residents of Lawrence County, Kentucky. The above depositions to be taken before J.D. Jones, notary public for Boyd County, Kentucky. The above depositions to be read as evidence in my behalf on trial of the contest on motion of yourself, contesting my right to a seat as member elect to the Forty-first Congress of the United States from the ninth congressional district of Kentucky. JOHN M. RICE. Mr. JOHN L. ZEIGLER.

Executed by delivering a true copy of the within notice to J.L. Zeigler, on the 10th day of April, 1869. R.B. MCCALL, STATE OF KENTUCKY, Boyd County, 88: Deputy for J.C. Eastham, Sheriff Boyd County. I, W.O. Hampton, clerk of the county court within and for the county and State aforesaid, do certify that R.B. McCall, the officer who executed the within notice, is now, and was at the time of so doing, an acting deputy sheriff of the county of Boyd, duly sworn as such, and that his signature thereto is genuine. Witness my hand and official seal, this 16th day of April, A. D. 1869. W.O. HAMPTON, Clerk.

Col. JOHN L. ZEIGLER: You are hereby notified that I will, on the 19th and 20th days of April, 1869, at the county court clerk’s office in the town of Paintsville, Johnson County, Kentucky, proceed to take the depositions of James Franklin, James E Stewart, Daniel Hager, sr., and James Stafford, all residents of the county of Johnson, State of Kentucky, and before Hiram E. Conley, judge of the Johnson County court. Also, on the 26th and 27th days of April, 1869, at the clerk’s office of the Floyd County court, in the town of Prestonsburg, Kentucky, will proceed to take the depositions of Robert S. Huey, Green M. Witten, Joseph M. Davidson, Evan Jones, and Thos. Ford, all residents of the county of Floyd, State of Kentucky, and before James P. Harris, judge of the Floyd County court. Also, on the 3d and 4th days of May, 1869, at the clerk’s office of the Pike County court, in the town of Pikeville, Kentucky, proceed to take the depositions of Nelson Hamilton, Hibbard Williamson, L.B. Swords, S.W. Ratliff, James Honaker, Thos. O. Marrs, James L. Ratliff, Joseph E. Ratliff, Isaac Robinson, Thos. J. Owings, Jeremiah Osburn, A.J. Hatcher, David Powell, James W. Cecil, Lindsey Maynard, Harry Ford, and Stephen M. Ferguson. All of the within witnesses are residents of the county of Pike and State of Kentucky, and taken before O.C. Bowles, notary public of Pike County. Also, on the 12th and 13th days of April, 1869, at the law office of K.F. Prichard, in the town of Louisa, Kentucky, proceed to take the depositions of Milton Freese, Geo. W. Johnson, M.B. Goble, Thos. McKinster, William Vinson, R.F. Vinson, Fleming McHenry, Green McHenry, Pharris Hale, Samuel Short, Samuel Vinson, Ralph Booten, Stephen Loar, Thomas Wallace, and P.J. Livingston, all residents of the county of Lawrence and State of Kentucky, and to be taken before John M. Clayton, judge of the Lawrence County court. Also, on the 10th and 11th days of May, 1869, at the law office of Geo. N. Brown, in the town of Callettsburg, Kentucky, before James D. Jones, notary public for said county, proceed to take the depositions of John S. Mahan, John W. Hampton, and John B. Hatcher, residents of the county of Boyd and State of Kentucky. Also, on the 17th day of May, 1869, at the Louisville Hotel, in the city of Louisville, Kentucky, before some notary public for the county of Jefferson, proceed to take the deposition of General Humphrey Marshall, resident of said city and county of Jefferson, Kentucky. Said depositions will be taken at the several times and places named, to be read as evidence upon the trial of the contest, on notice of yourself, contesting my seat as member elect to the forty-first Congress of the United States from the ninth congressional district in Kentucky. This March 31st, 1869. CATLETTSBURG, KENTUCKY, April 1, 1869. 9 o’clock a.m. JOHN M. RICE.

Delivered a copy of the within notice to John L. Zeigler, in person, at his residence in said town. JOHN S. MAHAR.  STATE OF KENTUCKY, Boyd County, 88: John S. Mahar personally appeared before me, and on oath says that he delivered to John L. Zeigler, in person, at his residence in the town of Catlettsburg, Kentucky, a copy of the within notice, at about 9 o clock a.m., on April the 1st, 1869. JOHN S. MAHAR. Sworn to before me, by John S. Mahar, this April 1, 1869. Given under my hand and seal the day and date above written. J.D. JONES, Notary Public.

Depositions. The deposition of DANIEL HAGER, esq., taken at the law office of George N. Brown, esq., on the 10th day of May, 1869, in the town of Catlettsburg, Ky., to read as evidence on a trial of a contest for a seat in the forty-first Congress of the United States, from the ninth congressional district of Kentucky, wherein John L. Zeigler, contestant, and John M. Rice, contestee.

Questions by John M. Rice’s counsel:

General Hager, you will state your age, residence, and how long you have been resident of the section you now live in; and you will state if you are acquainted with John M. Rice, the member-elect to the forty-first Congress; and state if the same has been intimate and friendly or not; and how long have you known him?

Answer. I am sixty-eight years of age next November; I am a resident of Johnson County, Ky.; I have resided in Johnson County, Ky. for over fifty years; I am acquainted with John M. Rice, and have known him from his boyhood up to the present time, and we have been intimate and friendly during that time.

By same: Q. You will state if you was acquainted with General Humphrey Marshall and John S. Williams, and the officers of the confederate army, while in the Sandy Valley and Western Virginia during the fall of 1861 and the winter of 1862. State if you was with them in their camp, and about them during said time; and you will state if you saw John M. Rice during said time, or up to about January 1862. If so, state what knowledge you have of his giving aid and comfort to the confederate army, or the rebellion, or those in the service of the rebellion. State how he was held by the others and soldiers in said army, as a friend or foe; state what you know about it.

A. I am acquainted with General Humphrey Marshall, and John S. Williams, and Col. John Ficklin, who established the first confederate camp at Prestonsburg, Ky., which was in the fall of 1861, and was with Marshall during that time and up to fall and winter of 1862. I was on Marshall’s and Williams’s staffs during that time; first on General Williams’s staff, then on General Marshall’s. I saw John M. Rice at Prestonsburg about the time the confederate camp was established there, but it may have been before. I do not know of John M. Rice giving any aid or comfort to the confederate army or the rebellion, or those in the service of the rebellion. But I do know that he was regarded by the officers and soldiers as throwing his influence to the other side, in this, to wit: That while said camp was in progress of organizing, some several companies, or part of companies, came there for the purpose of joining the army under John M. Rice, and one or two others; and as John M. Rice would not go into the army they disbanded and went home, and the officers considered, by said act, there was at least one regiment of men lost to the confederate army, and they blamed John M. Rice and others for not going into the army, as he was considered a man of influence in the Big Sandy Valley; and those parts of companies who came there said that they had come for the purpose of joining the army, and if such men as John M. Rice and J.M. Elliott and others would not go into the army they would not; and they disbanded and went home, and I understood afterward that a large portion of the men went into the federal army.

By same: Q. You will state at what time General Humphrey Marshall came into Kentucky, in the Sandy Valley, the first time, and established a camp; give the time of the year.

A. My recollection is that General Marshall the first time come to Middle Creek, Floyd County, Kentucky, about the last of November 1861, or the first of December 1861, and then moved to Paintville, Kentucky; then moved up to Hager’s Hill, three miles above Paintville, Kentucky, and made a camp, which was on the 25th day of December, 1861; and there remained for some time. Marshall never had a camp at Prestonsburg, but he had a camp on Middle Creek, as before stated, which is in about two miles from Prestonsburg.

Cross-examined:

Q. General, you were yourself an ardent confederate, I presume, in the years 1861 and 1862.

A. I was.

Q. Be so good as to define what you understand by the terms giving aid and comfort to the rebellion?

A. I understand aid and comfort to be joining the army, encouraging others to join the army, feeding the soldiers of the confederate army, and assisting them in every way possible, and doing all they can against the federal army.

Q. Who were the parties, besides John M. Rice and John M. Elliott, to whom you above alluded to as injuring the confederate cause by failing to join its army?

A. John M. Burns and G.M. Witten; I do not remember the names of other parties.

Q. General, be so good as to state if Messrs. John M. Rice, John M. Elliott, and John M. Burns were not all aspirants for position in the Congress of the Confederate States, about this time, 1861 and 1862, or any time thereafter?

A. Neither of them ever were, to my knowledge or information, excepting John M. Elliott, who was elected in 1862 or 1863.

Q. State if Mr. Rice and Mr. Elliott were not together, at that time, with Mr. Witten, regarded ardent southern men, and anxious for the success of the rebellion. Did they not profess to be for the rebellion or southern confederacy?

A. Mr. Elliott and Mr. Witten was, and Mr. Rice was expected to be on that side, but when it was found out that he (Rice) did not join the army, his influence was considered as thrown on the other side.

Q. Was it not rather the effect of his influence not being thrown into the right direction by his joining the ranks of the army that the soldiers and officers spoke discouragingly about?

A. It was the effect of his not joining the army, and not having anything to do with it, that the officers and soldiers of the confederate army considered that they had lost the influence of Mr. Rice, and good many soldiers, to the confederate army, and the expression of the officers was, at least a regiment.

Q. Did not the soldiers who disbanded say if John M. Rice, John M. Elliott, and Green Whitten would not join the army of the rebellion, that they (the disbanding soldiers) would not fight for said Rice, Whitten, and Elliott, or the southern confederacy? (Objected to by Mr. Rice’s attorney as incompetent.)

A. I heard a good many men say that they had come to Prestonsburg for the purpose of joining the confederate army, and fight in the confederate service, and if such men as J.M. Elliott, J.M. Burns, and J.M Rice would not join the army they would not.

Q. Did John M. Rice countenance you while you and he were at the confederate camps in the years 1861 and 1862?

A. John M. Rice and myself, when we met, we were friendly. When I saw him at Prestonsburg, I do not remember of any conversation with him on the subject of the army.

Q. Do I understand you to say that when John M. Rice failed to join the confederate army that he was considered to be disloyal to the confederacy by the officers and soldiers thereof?

A. As to his loyalty I do not remember of hearing that spoken of. The ground that Rice occupied was neutral, and not taking part on either side; and by this course his influence was considered as thrown to the federal side.

Q. Was Mr. Rice friendly or unfriendly to the confederate cause in 1861 and 1862, when you were together in the Sandy Valley?

A. I do not know that Mr. Rice was unfriendly to the confederate cause, friendly or unfriendly to either side. He was friendly with every person that he was associated with, so far as I know.

Q. Did you, while in the service of the rebellion, ever counsel with Mr. Rice about recruiting, or about the movements of the army, or about foraging or feeding the soldiers thereof, or about the policy of the war and how it should be waged for success to the confederates?

A. I did not.

Q. Was Mr. Rice with the confederate army when it retreated into Virginia, or was he in Virginia at any time after open hostilities between the two belligerent forces begun?

A. If he was, I had no knowledge of it.

Q. Is it not true that at the time the parts of companies came to Ficklin’s camp (the same that afterward disbanded) there was no legal organization of the insurgents, that Ficklin had not at that time nor thereafter a commission in the confederate army?

A. At the time Ficklin came to Prestonsburg, there were several companies who had elected their captains, and they elected Ficklin commander of that post; and John S. Williams went to Richmond and returned with a colonel’s commission and took command, and there was several companies organized afterward. I do not know that Ficklin ever was commissioned; he was called Colonel Ficklin.

Q. Was John M. Rice a member of the house of representatives of the general assembly of Kentucky in the year 1860 or in 1861?

A. I think he was, but I am not positive.

Q. Where did Mr. Rice live in 1860 and 1861?

A. I do not remember whether he resided in Piketon or Louisa, but he resided at one of said places.

Q. Was Mr. Rice friendly to the so-called government of Kentucky which claimed and pretended to be the dejure government of the State, and which had engaged in rebellion against the United States?

A. I know nothing about Mr. Rice’s course in reference to the provisional government of Kentucky under Hawes.

Q. General, be so good as to tell us how long you were in the confederate service, and if you were in Virginia, and where you were when the war ended, and when also your connection with the rebellion was severed.

A. I was in the confederate service from the fall of 1861 to the winter of 1862, and with Marshall’s army during that time. I was in Virginia in 1861 and 1862 with the army. I then left the army and rented a farm in Russell County, Virginia, and there remained until April 1865. But during the movements of Marshall, in 1861 and 1862, I came to Kentucky with it, and remained until it returned to Virginia.

Q. When you were at Prestonsburg as general of the militia, organizing the same, and Mr. Rice was there, did he address the militia or encourage military preparations against what he termed the aggressions or usurpations of the United States government?

A. I was only colonel when I was organizing a regiment at Prestonsburg. This was before the camp was established there. Mr. Rice was there at the time, but I had nothing to say to him in relation to his course that I now remember. I regarded Mr. Rice as occupying a neutral position. But once, when I was passing with my command where Mr. Rice was standing, I heard him make the remark, that looks a good deal like war. This was the only expression that I heard Rice make.

Q. Was not Mr. Rice with the confederate army at Abingdon, Virginia, and did he not accompany the army of Marshall to Kentucky in the winter of 1862, and when was Mr. Rice taken into the custody of the military authorities of the United States, and where was he captured? State all the information you have on this subject, either from Mr. Rice or your own recollection.

A. If Mr. Rice was with the confederate army at Abingdon, Virginia, I do not know it. I never saw Mr. Rice with the confederate army to my recollection. I do not know of Mr. Rice being taken into custody by the authorities of the United States. I have no information upon this subject from Mr. Rice, or any other person that I remember of.

Q. Where was Mr. Rice from October 1861 to January 1862, and what was he doing?

A. I do not know.

Q. When was Rice at Prestonsburg, and when was Ficklin there; and where was Marshall’s army in 1861-62, up to January, in the months of October and January?

A. I do not remember the date that Rice was in Prestonsburg; it was either in the summer or fall of 1861. Ficklin was there in the fall of 1861. Marshall’s army came to Kentucky in the fall or forepart of the winter of 1861, and remained up to January 1862, and then it returned to Virginia.

Q. Where was Mr. Rice’s family from October 1861, up to the 1st of January 1862?

A. I do not know.

Q. Was Mr. Rice at Ficklin’s camp between October 1861 and January 1862, or at any time Ficklin was there?

A. I do not remember.

Q. Who was in command at Prestonsburg when you saw Rice there, and what opportunities had you to know whether he gave aid or comfort to the rebellion?

A. I was in command at Prestonsburg, Kentucky, at the time I saw Rice there. He may have been there when Ficklin was in command, but I do not remember. My opportunities were pretty good to know whether or not Mr. Rice gave aid or comfort to the rebellion, as I was in Ficklin’s camp a large portion of the time, except when I was out on a scout.

Q. How often did you see Mr. Rice during that time, and was he then generally with you or not?

A. I did not see him often; he (Rice) was not generally with me.

Q. Is it not a fact that you and Mr. Rice were but little together; that you never talked about the war; and that of your own knowledge you know but little or nothing of Mr. Rice’s doings or sayings in 1861 and 1862?

A. Mr. Rice and myself was but little together in 1861, and of my own knowledge know but little about his course in the fall and winter of 1861 and 1862.

Q. State all that passed between you and Mr. Rice, which you can now remember, about the rebellion in 1861 and 1862. (Objected to by Rice’s attorney, as it has been asked and answered.)

A. I do not remember any conversation between Mr. Rice and myself in 1861 and 1862 upon the subject of the war. As I stated before, I was under the opinion that Mr. Rice was occupying neutral ground, and therefore did not introduce a conversation with him upon the subject of the war.

Re-examined by Rice’s attorney:

Q. While you were organizing the State militia, was it not under the authority of the laws of Kentucky, to maintain neutrality; and was not the position of Rice on neutrality such as the principal Union men of Kentucky occupied before Kentucky decided to take part in the rebellion? (Objected to by Zeigler’s attorney.)

A. While I was organizing the State militia it was under the State law, and for the purpose of maintaining the neutral position of Kentucky. My understanding is that Rice’s position was the same as the principal leading Union men of Kentucky at that time. DANIEL HAGER, SEN.

Also the deposition of RANDOLPH BOTTS, taken at the same time and place, and for the same purpose mentioned in the caption.

Examined by Rice’s attorney:

Q. Captain Botts, you will state your age, residence, and how long have you been acquainted with John M. Rice; state if you was stationed at Louisa, the place of John M. Rice’s residence, during the war; state for what period. You will also speak of said Rice’s acts and conduct toward the federal soldiers and officers. Was his deportment loyal or disloyal? State what you know about his acts during your said acquaintance in relation to the rebellion, either for the federal or confederate government, and your opportunities. (Objected to by Zeigler’s attorney.)

A. Age, thirty-five; residence, the town of Ashland, Boyd County, Kentucky; have been acquainted with John M. Rice six years; I was on duty at Louisa, Kentucky, as captain and assistant quartermaster United States Army, during part of the year 1863, and first met him there; resided in his house about nine months; I have never heard him (Rice) utter disloyal sentiments, and his conduct was always kind and courteous to myself and brother officers.

By same: Q. State how long was you in the army of the United States in the late war. You will also state if Rice’s house was not a place that many of the federal officers made their home, and with his family.

A. I was in the army, as captain and assistant quartermaster, from the 17th July, 1862, to November 1865. Rice’s house was at times filled with the federal officers and their families.

Cross-examined:

Q. Were you in Louisa, Kentucky, in the years 1861 and 1862, and was Mr. Rice then residing in Louisa, Kentucky?

A. I was not in Louisa in 1861 and 1862. I did not know where he lived then.

Q. Do you know where Mr. Rice was in the months of October, November, and December 1861, and in the months of January and February 1862?

A. I do not.

Q. Please mention the families who boarded with Mr. Rice.

A. The families residing with me at Mr. Rice’s were Captain John S. Rodgers, and wife; Lieutenant Dan. Brown, wife, and child; J.M. Kelley, and family, chief clerk quartermaster’s department, and others whom I cannot now remember.

Q. Was Mr. Rice ever with the confederate army in the years 1861 and 1862, in Abingdon, Washington County, Virginia?

A. Not that I know of. RANDOLPH BOTTS.

Also the deposition of THOMAS MCKINSTER, taken at the same time and place mentioned in the caption.

Examined by Rice’s attorney:

Question. Please state your age and name; if acquainted with Hon. John M. Rice, M.C., from Kentucky, ninth congressional district, say for what period you have known him was that acquaintance with him intimate; did you see him often in 1860, and ’61, 62, 63, and ’64? Did you ever, in either of these years, hear Mr. Rice make a speech on political topics? If so, what did he say? If you ever heard him discuss the rebellion, give his views, give them.

Answer. My age is forty-seven years; my residence is in Lawrence County, Kentucky. I have known John M. Rice ever since boyhood, and have been intimately acquainted with him ever since he began to figure in life. I seen him frequently in 1860 and ‘61. At a meeting held in our county, I believe in the town of Louisa, in the summer of 1861, he made a short speech in that meeting; in it he took the grounds of neutrality, and said that we were not responsible for the acts of the fire-eaters of the South, nor the conduct of the fanatics of the North, (something like this was his language on that occasion.) I have heard him talk of the rebellion in 1861 to ‘63, of the progress and failures of the war, and generally said that Kentucky ought not to have went into the war.

Q. In 1860 and ’61 was not the position of neutrality advocated strongly by the Union men of the State, and did not the rebel element war upon that doctrine and urge that the State ought at once to secede and unite her destinies with the South? (Objected to by Zeigler.)

A. It was to my understanding, and so far as I knew; the rebel element objected to it and said that every man ought to go into the rebellion.”

Q. Did you see John M. Rice often in 1860 and 1861, and did you during those years ever hear Mr. Rice utter a disloyal sentiment to yourself or others; or during these years, or since, did you ever know Mr. Rice to aid or abet the rebellion, or those engaged in, in any way or manner?

A. I did converse with him in 1860 and ’61. I never heard him use any disloyal discourse at any time, either in these years or since, to my knowledge. I never knew him, in no sense of the term, to aid the rebellion or those engaged in the rebellion.

Q. Do you know of his ever attempting to prevent enlistments, or to attempt in any manner to hinder the process of recruiting for and carrying on the war?

A. I never did.

Q. Do you know of Mr. Rice’s serving in a military capacity during the late war; and if so, when, in what capacity, and in what service? Tell all you know about it, if anything.

A. I do know that he did; he served in the State militia, and in the capacity of quartermaster, and as quartermaster sergeant. I, being appointed colonel of the State militia, was ordered first by order of Colonel George W. Gallup, commanding the United States forces at Louisa, and, secondly, by order of Governor Thomas E. Bramlett, in the early part of 1864, the first call, and the last call, later in the same year, in which calls, the entire able-bodied men did service, amongst which John M. Rice did act promptly and satisfactorily to the entire regiment, so far as I then knew or since, as above stated; this took place in the county of Lawrence, and the State of Kentucky, and was on duty and did do service for near three months, first and last.

Q. Colonel, you will please state whether or not you were ever in the federal army; and if so, when did you enlist; where were you in service; and in what capacity?

A. I was in the federal service; I went into it as private, recruited one company, and was elected captain, and served in said company some or near nine months, and on account of bad health I resigned, and was immediately or nearly so, after I got back home, was appointed colonel of the sixty-eighth regiment of State enrolled militia, and tried best I could to help defend my country and home against the confederates. The time I went into the volunteer service was in October 1861; I went into the Fourteenth regiment Kentucky volunteer infantry, and company D of said regiment.

Cross-examined:

Q. Where was John M. Rice in the months of October 1861, in November 1861, in December 1861, and in the month of January 1862?

A. I do not recollect.

Q. Was he in Virginia with the confederates at that time, 1861-62; and has he ever told you anything about being with Humphrey Marshall’s command at Abingdon or other points in Virginia?

A. I never heard him say that he was in Virginia at all as I remember; I heard him say that Marshall, or some other confederate, offered him a position in the confederate army when he went up the river to see to some business at or in the vicinity where he had previously moved from in the latter part of 1861 or the first part of 1862, and said he told them or him that he had not come up to go into the army, but to collect money; and he said he further told him that his position was neutrality.

Q. When was it Mr. Rice told you of the latter part of this conversation?

A. I believe it was in 1862 when he first told me that.

Q. Was this the time when Mr. Rice returned, or was brought into Louisa, from Paintsville, Johnson County, Kentucky, and after he took the parole of honor or oath of allegiance to the United States government? (Objected to by attorney of Rice ” because the question is leading.”) (Objection withdrawn.)

A. I do not know that he was fetched to Paintsville, Johnson County, Kentucky, or that he took the oath of parole, only from hearsay of others. But I now think he told me it in the first part of the year 1862, I believe, or the best impression now on my memory is that it was in February or March 1862.

Q. Was it after you first heard that Mr. Rice had been brought into the federal camp at Johnson County, Kentucky?

A. I am not certain, but I believe it was.

Q. Where was Mr. Rice’s family, in the years 1861 and 1862, from the first of October 1861 up to the first of January 1862?

A. I do not know, but I believe they were at Louisa.

Q. Was Mr. Rice at Louisa at any time in October 1861, or in either November or December of that year, or in January 1862, before the 14th day of the month?

A. I do not recollect.

Q. Was Mr. Rice a supporter of the provisional government of Kentucky?

A. Not at all, so far as I know. Q.

Was Mr. Rice ever with the command of General Marshall, or Colonel John S. Williams, or Colonel Ficklin, as he was called; did he ever countenance them, or counsel them, or voluntarily give aid to any rule, or power, or government authority, hostile or inimical to the government of the United States?

A. Not as I know of in any respect.

Q. Was he (Mr. Rice) in concert with the federal authorities, or in their military lines, before he came to Louisa from Johnson, in the year 1862, January?

A. I did not see or knew him to be in their lines, nor I do not know he was not; he (Mr. Rice) was in Louisa in 1861; I do not remember that they had extended their lines up the river until about November 1861, and then I paid no attention to Mr. Rice’s whereabouts until I saw him in the next spring or latter part of the winter.

Q. Do you know where Mr. Rice was at the time the federals first came to Louisa?

A. I do not know.

Q. Do you remember ever to have heard Mr. Rice say where he was in 1861, when the federals first came to Louisa, and where he went and what he did?

A. I heard Mr. Rice say he went up the river to see about collecting some money, and it may have been at that time and it may have been before or after their arrival. I do not recollect as to the acts of Mr. Rice or any other citizen on our going to Louisa, in particular.

Q. What office did Mr. Rice hold in the militia when he was called out; how long did he serve, and was he ever in the military service of the United States, except for the short time he was in the militia service; and was he at any time after he came into Louisa, Kentucky, from Johnson County, Kentucky, arrested by the military authorities of the United States under charge of disloyalty, and if so, where was he taken?

A. He held the office of quartermaster in the enrolled State militia part of the time, and part of the time quartermaster-sergeant; he served near three months; he was not in any other way connected as I knew of; as to his being arrested after he came from Johnson County, Kentucky, I know nothing, only from hearsay. The Sixty- eighth regiment of State militia served in Lawrence County, Kentucky, in which regiment Mr. J.M. Rice served.

Q. When were the speeches of Mr. Rice made, and the time they were made, and who replied to them, if anybody?

A. Louisa, Kentucky, I think, in the summer of 1861. It was on a general meeting of the citizens of Lawrence County, and the subject discussed to the best of my recollection was neutrality. There was no disagreement at the meeting as I knew of- no one replied.

Q. Was not all at that time in favor of neutrality?

A. All but those who afterwards went into the rebel army or was rebels.

Q. You say there was no disagreement at the meeting and no one replied to Mr. Rice. How then do you make it appear that those who afterwards went into rebellion were not in favor of neutrality?

A. I thought your question applied to all the people and not to the people of that meeting in particular.

Q. How long was this neutrality speech made before the federals came into Louisa?

A. Sometime in the summer, and if my recollection serves me right, they came into Louisa the next fall. I think it was in the fall of 1861. And further this deponent saith not. THOMAS MCKINSTER.

Also the deposition of LEO FRANK, taken at the same time and place, and for the same purpose mentioned in the caption.

Examined by Rice’s attorney:

Question. Please state your residence, occupation, and age.

Answer. I reside at Louisa, Kentucky, and my occupation is that of a watch maker; my age is twenty- four years.

Q. How long have you lived at Louisa?

A. I have resided at Louisa, Kentucky, three and a half years.

Q. You will please state whether or not you are acquainted with John Pigg, of Louisa, Lawrence County, Kentucky, a witness who has testified in this contest; and if so, how long have you known him and what is his trade?

A. I am acquainted with John Pigg; I have known him ever since I have been at Louisa, Kentucky; his occupation is that of a blacksmith.

Q. Did you ever know or hear of Pigg ever making or attempting to make, or professing to make, weapons of warfare, such as swords, pistols, daggers, guns, cannons, hand-grenades, or any other destructive weapon? (Objected to by Zeigler’s attorneys.)

A. I did not.

Q. Please state what kind of smith-work Pigg does, or is capable of doing, so far as you know? (Objected to by Zeigler’s attorney.)

A. Pigg shoes horses and makes rough farmers’ work. I do not think he is capable of doing any other kind of work in blacksmithing, except ordinary work.

Q. You will please state, if you know, what is said John Pigg’s feelings towards Hon. John M. Rice, member Congress for ninth congressional district, Kentucky, (to Congress,) and what has been his feelings towards Mr. Rice for some time past; if you ever heard Mr. Pigg say that he would injure Rice, say when, where, and what he said? (Objected to.)

A. I do not think Pigg’s feelings are very good towards the Hon. John M. Rice. I heard Pigg say some two months ago, while on my way to the mill, I passed by Pigg’s shop and stopped, and while there in the presence of Robert Crutcher, and others, he, Pigg, said that he would do everything in his power against John M. Rice, and never do anything for him.

Cross- examined:

Q. Were you in the notice of Mr. Rice to take depositions at Louisa, your place of residence?

A. I was not.

Q. Were you a resident of Lawrence County, Kentucky, in the years, 1861-62, or of any of the other counties of the Sandy Valley, on the Kentucky side of the river, and where did you live before you came to Kentucky?

A. I was not a resident of Lawrence County, Kentucky in the years of 1861 and 1862, or of any other of the counties of the Sandy Valley. I resided at Little Rock, Arkansas, before I came to Kentucky.

Q. You are a watch maker, I believe?

A. Yes, sir.

Q. Are watch makers generally professed connoisseurs of blacksmiths’ work?

A. They are not generally.

Q. Are they not competent to beat the plowshare into the implements of modern warfare?

A. That depends on circumstances.

Q. The conversation you heard between John Pigg and others, about two months ago, and to which you were interrogated in your examination-in-chief, was that not after the 18th day of February 1869?

A. I cannot say for certain, but I think it was about two months ago, but it may have been longer.

Q. Has there not been some irritation between Mr. Pigg and Mr. Rice’s friends since the taking of the deposition of Pigg on the 18th day of February 1869?

A. I do not know.

Q. What relationship exists between Mr. John M. Rice and Judge Short, of Louisa, and say if Judge Short and Mr. Pigg have not bad a difficulty about his, Pigg’s, deposition in this contest?

A. I do not know what relationship there is between Judge Short of Louisa, and John M. Rice; I know nothing about it, but from hearsay, what is the difficulty between Judge Short and Mr. Pigg.

Q. How long since you first heard that there had been a difference between Pigg and Short?

A. About three weeks ago, or upwards.

Q. Are you and John Pigg on friendly terms at this time, and have you been friendly heretofore?

A. Yes, sir.

Re-examined:

Q. If you were ever in the military service, say in what service and where?

A, I was in the federal service; I volunteered in 1862, and staid in about three years. I was in the Thirty-fifth Missouri regiment.

Q. If Mr. Pigg, in the conversation referred to by you, gave any reasons for his enmity of Mr. Rice, say what it was.

A. Pigg gave no reason that I remember. LEO FRANK.

Also the deposition of CHARLES WILSON, taken at the same time and place, and for the same purpose mentioned in the caption.

Examined by Rice’s attorney:

Question. State your age and residence.

Answer. I am sixty-eight years of age, and reside in Louisa, Lawrence County, Kentucky.

Q. State whether or not you are acquainted with John Pigg, of Louisa, Kentucky, who has testified in this action; and if so, how long you have known him.

A. I am acquainted with him, and have known him for fifteen years, at least.

Q. Are you acquainted with his general moral character?

A. I am.

Q. Is that character good or bad?

A. I cannot say that it is good, and it is therefore bad.

Q. I again ask, and want a direct answer-is that character good or bad?

A. It is bad.

Q. From his general moral character is he entitled to credit on oath as a witness?

A. I think not, sir.

Cross-examined:

Q. Do you speak of your own knowledge of Pigg’s character?

A. I do not. But I can speak of my own knowledge and what others say, that is if you wish to have it in that way.

Q. Have you ever heard anything to the prejudice of his character before this contested election in which he was sworn as a witness?

A. I have, sir.

Q. Were you ever spoken to as a witness before the depositions were closed on Mr. Rice’s notice at Louisa?

A. No, sir.

Q. Are you and Mr. Pigg friends at this time, and have you been friends heretofore, and were you at any periods of your past lives very bitter enemies?

A. We are apparently friendly. I have no malice at him, and if he has toward me I do not know it. Some years ago we had a lawsuit which we agreed should be friendly. There was no malice between us.

Q. Who have you heard speak of the moral character of John Pigg, and when?

A. I cannot remember all, but have heard Calvin Wellman speak of Pigg’s character some several times some time back and recently, but the exact time I cannot I say. I heard two Wilsons say that he, Pigg, was a dangerous fellow on oath, and they said he was a bad and treacherous man. I have had conversation with many others in regard to him whose names I cannot now call to mind.

Q. Are you one of the same Wilsons above spoken of, and of a kin to either or any?

A. No, sir. The two Wilsons I have spoken of are my sons.

Q. Most of the persons whose names you now remember, and whom you remember to have spoken of John Pigg’s character, are of the Wilson family, I presume?

A. Most of the names that I have referred to are of the Wilson family. But, as I before stated, I had conversation with other persons, whose names I do not remember, in reference to Pigg’s character.

Q. Are your sons members of your family, and are they not hostile to John Pigg?

A. My sons are not members of my family at this time. They have families of their own. Pigg and one of them had some words two years ago, but they appear friendly at this time.

Q. It was only a friendly bickering, I presume, with the one, and entire amity and loveliness with the other.

A. I cannot answer the question in the shape that it is in, but I will answer the question as I understand it. There was no blows between Pigg and the one, and no loveliness with the other, that I know of.

Re-examined:

Q. Mr. Wilson, please state what has been your political conduct and sentiments for the last eight years past. (Objected to by Zeigler’s attorney.)

A. I have been a Union man, and what little acting I done was with the Union party.

Adjourned until the 11th day of May, 1869, at 8 o’clock a. m. MAY 10, 1869. CHARLES WILSON. J.D. JONES, Notary Public.

At 8 o’clock a.m., on the 11th of May, 1869, Zeigler and his attorney met at the place mentioned in the caption, where the depositions are being taken; but Rice nor his attorney was not present, and no witness on Rice’s behalf there at 8 o’clock a.m. Thereupon Zeigler and his attorney offered witnesses, to wit: B. Burk, J.H. Ford, to and for the purpose of sustaining John Pigg; and I adjudged that Zeigler could not take deposition under Rice’s notice. J.D. JONES, Notary Public. At 10 o’clock a.m., on the 11th May, 1869, met at the place mentioned in the caption for the purpose of taking deposition for Rice under his notice, according to the order of adjournment.

C.R. WILSON being introduced and sworn according to law.

Examined by Rice’s attorney:

Question. State your age and residence.

Answer. I am thirty-one years of age, and reside in Lawrence County, Kentucky, near the town of Louisa.

Q. How long have you so resided?

A. I have lived in the town of Louisa, and near to said town, for three years. I have been well acquainted there all my life.

Q. Are you acquainted with John Pigg, the blacksmith, of Louisa, Lawrence County, Kentucky; and if so, how long have you known him?

A. I am acquainted with John Pigg, of Louisa, Kentucky, and have known him ever since I was a small boy.

Q. Please state whether or not you are acquainted with his general moral character, and if so how long have you known it?

A. I am acquainted with his general moral character. I have been well acquainted with his general moral character from four to five years.

Q. Is that general moral character good or bad?

A. It is bad.

Q. From that general moral character is he entitled to credit while on oath as a witness?

A. I should think not in all cases.

Q. Do you know what is and has been the state of his feelings toward Hon. John M. Rice, friendly or unfriendly?

A. According to what I have heard Pigg say it is unfriendly.

Cross-examined by Jno. L. Zeigler:

Q. Mr. Wilson, how near do you live to John Pigg?

A. About three-fourths of a mile.

By same: Q. How long have you lived at your present place of residence, and how long have you lived in three-quarters of a mile of John Pigg?

A. I have lived at my present place of residence for over two years. The same length of time.

By same: Q. You have said that the general moral character of John Pigg is bad; now you will please state to what particular vices he is addicted that makes his general moral character bad.

A. I do not speak of his general traits of character, I only speak from what the citizens say of him.

By same: Q. State what the citizens say of him, and who said it, and when it was said.

A. I have heard a good many persons say that he was a mean man, within the last three years; I have [heard] Judge Short, Thomas Wallace, George Castle, and others, whose names I cannot now remember; I have heard it said frequently within the last three years.

By same: Q. Is it or not facts the persons above named are the political friends of John M. Rice, and they have done the talking, or most of it, since John Pigg gave a deposition in this contest?

A. Judge Short is the political friend of John M. Rice; as to the others, I cannot say. I do not know that I have heard them say any about John Pigg since giving his deposition in this contest. But many have heard Judge Short say something since. But as to the other I have not.

By same: Q. What relation is Judge Short to John M. Rice?

A. They are said to be brothers- in-law.

By same: Q. You said the persons spoken of say John Pigg was a mean man. In what was he mean?

A. In different circumstances I have heard Pigg accused of good many mean tricks. I have heard men say that Pigg swore a lie.

By same: Q. In what case did you hear them say he swore a lie?

A. In this case, for one. But I am not positive I heard them in any other cases.

By same: Q. Who did hear say it?

A. Judge Short.

By same: Q. Did you ever hear anyone say anything derogatory of the character of John Pigg until after this contest began? Tell who said it, and what they did say, and how many did you hear speak.

A. I have heard persons say things derogatory to Pigg’s character before this contest began. I cannot tell who said it, and cannot tell when it was said, or what was said as to particular word which was said.

By same: Q. If you cannot tell what you have heard said derogatory of the character of John Pigg, who said it, or when said, why is it that you are able to say he is a man of general bad moral character in the neighborhood in which he lives? (Objected to by Rice’s attorney.)

A. The reason is that Pigg’s character has been spoken of within the last three years. But I do not now remember who it was, as I did not pay particular attention to the persons who said it, or under what circumstances it was said.

By same: Q. What is the population of Louisa, and are you well acquainted with the residents of said town?

A. The population of Louisa, Kentucky, may be six hundred or more. I am well acquainted with the citizens of said town.

By same: Q. What relationship exists between you and Charles Wilson, who gave his deposition at this place on yesterday?

A. He is my father.

By same: Q. Are you acquainted with K.F. Prichard, of Louisa, Kentucky? Is he present and acting as the attorney of John M. Rice?

A. I am acquainted with K.F. Prichard, esq., of Louisa. He is acting as the attorney of J.M. Rice in taking my deposition. K.F. Prichard has been a resident of Louisa, Kentucky, for about nine years, to my knowledge.

Re-examined:

Q. When you say that you cannot give the exact words you have heard about John Pigg by many of his neighbors, and their names, do you not mean that as to those events and occurrences your memory does not serve you?

A. It is.

Q. What has been the financial condition of John Pigg for the last ten or fifteen years past?

A. It has been reasonable, and he has had about as much property as the common run of men in that section.

Q. Do you, or not, know it as a fact, that Pigg has raised a large family of children, and now has grown daughters who don’t know a letter of the alphabet, or did you ever see one of his children going to school? (Objected to by Zeigler’s attorney, as impertinent and not in the issue.)

A. Pigg has raised a large family of children without sending them to school. I do not know that they do not know a letter of the alphabet.

Q. If you were ever in the military service, say in what service, at what time, and how long you served. (Question objected to by Zeigler’s attorney.)

A. I was in the federal service during the war, to wit, the Fourteenth Kentucky regiment. C. R. WILSON.

Also the deposition of GRAHAM WILSON, taken at the same time and place, and for the purpose mentioned in the caption.

Examined by Rice’s attorney:

Question. State your age and residence, and how long you have so resided?

Answer. I am thirty-nine years of age last January. I reside in Louisa, Kentucky. I have resided there, the last time that I moved there, for about four years.

Q. Are you acquainted with John Pigg, of Louisa, Kentucky; and, if so, where has he lived for the last ten or fifteen years, and how long have you known Pigg?

A. I am acquainted with John Pigg, of Louisa, Kentucky. He has lived in Louisa, Kentucky, most of the time for the last ten or fifteen years. I have known John Pigg for about twenty years.

Q. Are you acquainted with his general moral character; and, if so, how long have you known it, and is it good or bad?

A. I think that I am acquainted with Pigg’s general moral character; I have known it for the last four years. The way that I take his character it is bad.

Q. From that character is he entitled to credit while on oath as a witness?

A. He is not.

Cross-examined:

Q. Are you a son of Charles Wilson, of Louisa, Kentucky, and a brother of Charles Ramsey Wilson, both of whom have been examined as witnesses in this cause?

A. Yes, sir.

Q. Where have you been and lived for the eight years last past, and what were you doing?

A. For the last four years I lived at Louisa, Kentucky. For four years before that I was at home part of the time and the other part fighting the Yankees.

Q. Define what you understand by the terms general moral character.

A. The way that I understand it is, what a man’s neighbors say about him.

Q. What do the neighbors of John Pigg say about him?

A. All of his neighbors that I have heard speak of him spoke hard of him. Some of them said that they would not believe him on oath.

Q. Which of his neighbors have you heard speak of him; and, of that number, who said they would not believe him on oath; and when were you spoken to about John Pigg by any of his neighbors?

A. I have heard Calvin Wellman, James Wellman, Thomas Wallace, and George Castle, and other persons whose names I do not now remember, speak of him. I heard Calvin Wellman say that he would not believe Pigg on oath. I one day heard James Wellman say that Pigg was a dangerous man. When Calvin Wellman first spoke to me about Pigg it was the commencement of the war. When James Wellman spoke to me about him, it was last fall one year ago.

Q. What vices constituted the defects of his character?

A. I heard Calvin Wellman say that he sat by and heard Pigg swear a lie.

Q. Was this the only vice you heard spoken of, and was Calvin Wellman the only man you heard say it? Mention them.

A. Calvin Wellman was the only man that I heard say anything about this one case in which he said Pigg swore a lie. But I have heard my father and George Castle say that he swore a lie in other cases. I think I heard my father say so, but of this I am not certain.

Q. Has not your father been always on professedly friendly terms with John Pigg?

A. They have been friendly so far as I know. They had once a small lawsuit.

Q. Are you and Pigg on terms of intimacy and friendship, and have you been in the past?

A. Pigg and myself are on friendly terms at this time; but within the last twenty years we have had two or three quarrels- one rough one. The hard feelings did not last long between us.

Q. Are you on terms of intimacy with John Pigg?

A. Yes sir, we have neighbored a little together since our last quarrel. He has borrowed of me, and I borrowed of him.

Q. What did he borrow of you and what did you borrow of him?

A. He borrowed of me a lounge, and I borrowed of him a harrow.

Q. Do you mean to say that you can be on terms of intimacy at this time with a man whom you cannot believe on oath?

A. Yes sir.

Q. Is it not a fact that you have heard more said against John Pigg since he has sworn in this case than you ever heard before, and was it not said by the political friends of John M. Rice and the personal and political enemies of John Pigg?

A. As I said before, the most that I heard against John Pigg was before his deposition was given in this case. I have heard some talk about Pigg since he gave his deposition in this case. It was George Castle; and I also heard Calvin Wellman say the same thing about him since he, Pigg, gave his deposition in this case, which was said by Wellman before Pigg gave his deposition. I suppose these men whom I heard speak of Pigg belong to the same political party that John M. Rice does. I do not consider them personal enemies of Pigg. But I think George Castle does not like Pigg very well.

Q. Is not Pigg a man who has some few bitter personal enemies?

A. I cannot say that Pigg has personal, bitter enemies; but I have heard a good many men speak of him.

By same: Q. Is it not a fact that John Pigg, during the war, was an outspoken Union man and incurred the displeasure of many of those favorable to the southern cause?

A. He was called a Union man. (I cannot give any further answer to the above question, as I was not at Louisa, Ky., the whole time during the war, or the largest part of the time the war was going on.)

Re-examined by John M. Rice, counsel:

Question by same. You have spoken of intimacy with John Pigg, as asked by Colonel Honshell, counsel for Colonel Zeigler. Do you not mean that you was friendly with Pigg, instead of intimate?

A. Yes, sir. GRAHAM WILSON.

Also the deposition of JAMES D. FOSTER, taken at the same time and place, and for the same purpose, mentioned in the caption.

Examined by Rice’s attorney:

Mr. James D. Foster, you will state your age, residence, and acquaintance with John M. Rice, member elect to the forty-first Congress. State if you boarded with said Rice during a portion of the war; if so, how long. State your position in the federal army at that time; if other officers boarded with him. State his behavior toward the federal officers and soldiers during the war, and what position he occupied in the sixty-eighth enrolled militia of Lawrence County; and if they were in the service of the United States.

A. My age is 28 years. Residence at the present time, Ashland, Boyd County, Kentucky. My first acquaintance with John M. Rice was in the fall or early winter of 1863. At that time several officers of the federal army were boarding with him, and I visited them occasionally. In the latter part of the year 1864 I commenced to board with said Rice, and considered his house my home the most of the time till June 1868. I was regimental quartermaster of Fourteenth Kentucky infantry volunteers, and after I was mustered out of service on the thirty-first day of January, 1865, I was a clerk in the quartermaster’s department under captain Randolph Botts, assistant quartermaster. During the year 1863, when I visited brother officers at Rice’s, and up to the present time, I have never seen or heard of Rice’s saying or doing anything that was not perfectly courteous and gentlemanly. In the latter part of May 1864, when the enrolled militia was called into service, John M. Rice was regimental quartermaster of the Six-ty-eighth militia, and was acting in that capacity in June when I started to rejoin my regiment in Georgia.

By same: Q. Are you acquainted with John Pigg, of Louisa, Kentucky; if yea, how long have you known him; was he in any way engaged in government employ during the war; if so, what?

A. I know John Pigg by sight, but I cannot say I am intimately acquainted with him. First knew him in the year 1863, when I was acting as post quartermaster at Louisa, Kentucky. Pigg was a blacksmith, and I sometimes employed him to work for me.

By same: Q. Are you acquainted with his general moral character?

A. I have heard considerable talk about him in regard to refusing to school his children and being miserly, but I know of nothing for or against him myself. JAMES D. FOSTER.

The further taking of deposition is adjourned until the 12th of May, 1869, at ten and one-half o’clock a.m. J.E. JONES, Notary Public.

Met pursuant to the adjournment, at ten and one-half o’clock a.m., and there being no witnesses appeared, I then adjourned until three o’clock p.m. May 12, 1869.

And at seven o’clock and a half p.m. on said day, R.H. MEEK appeared and was duly sworn for the purpose of giving his deposition for the same purpose mentioned in the caption.

Examined by Rice’s attorney:

Question. Mr. Richard H. Meek, you will state your age, residence, and how long you have resided in the town of Louisa and vicinity. How long have you been acquainted with John Pigg, of Lawrence County, and the witness with him?

A. I am thirty-three years old, and reside near Louisa, and have resided in Louisa, Kentucky, and near to Louisa, Kentucky, all my life, with the exception of about five years. The five years that I resided away from Louisa was before I was twenty-one years of age. I have been acquainted with John Pigg, of Lawrence County, Kentucky, between ten and fifteen years, and have been personally acquainted with him for at least ten years.

By same: Q. Is not your residence in Lawrence County, Kentucky, also?

A. Yes, sir.

By same: Q. Are you acquainted with the general moral character of John Pigg in the neighborhood in which he lives?

A. I think that I am.

By same: Q. Is that general moral character good or bad?

A. I would have to call it bad from what I hear of the man.

By same: Q. From that general moral character is he entitled to credit on oath as a witness?

A. I would not be willing to trust him, and especially if there was malice existing.

By same: Q. You will state if you ever heard him make any threat or statement what he would do against John M. Rice in regard to his seat in Congress; if so, state what he said, when it was, and where it was he stated it?

A. I heard Pigg speak hard of John M. Rice; it was in Louisa, Kentucky, in the last of April or the 1st of May, 1868, and it was before August 1868; Pigg said that he would do all he could against Mr. Rice, no matter what Mr. Rice offered for, and that no damn rebel should rule him.

By same: Q. You will state if you are acquainted with Benjamin Burke, John H. Ford, Alfred Haily, William Pugh, William A. Foster, James Fraser, Morris Willman, and L.T. Moore; if so, state where they reside-what is the distance from their residences to the residence and neighborhood of John Pigg?

A. I am acquainted with all the above gentlemen with the exception of John H. Ford. L.T. Moore, James Fraser, William A. Foster, Morris Wellman, and Benjamin Burk reside in Catlettsburg, Kentucky, about twenty-five miles from Louisa, Kentucky, the residence of John Pigg.

By same: Q. You will state how long since either of the above named persons has lived in the neighborhood of John Pigg’s, if ever; state separately each time?

A. Benjamin Burk resided in Louisa, Kentucky, about ten years ago; Alfred Haily never lived in Lawrence County, Kentucky, to my knowledge; William Pugh did live in Louisa, about twelve or fifteen years ago; William A. Foster never lived in Louisa, Kentucky, to my knowledge; James Fraser lived in Louisa, Kentucky, about six or seven years ago; Morris Wellman has lived in Catlettsburg, Kentucky, for the last fifteen years; L.T. Moore lived in Louisa, Kentucky, before the war, and has not lived in Louisa, Kentucky, for four or five years.

By same: Q. You will state if any person by the name of John H. Ford ever resided in the neighborhood of John Pigg’s in the last two years to your knowledge?

A. Not to my knowledge.

Cross-examined:

Q. Have you heard a majority of John Pigg’s neighbors speak evil of him?

A. I do not know that I have.

By same: Q. State the names of the persons you have heard speak evil of him?

A. I have heard Charles R. Wilson, Graham Wilson, Charles Wilson, and Calvin Wellman; I have heard William Vinson say that he would not trust him, Pigg, or that Pigg would not do to be trusted; the conversation came up with Vinson about an election; I also heard Ed. Meek say that Pigg was a damn old dog; I also heard Graham Wilson say to Pigg that he had told a lie and swore to it.

By same: Q. If the foregoing answer embraces the names of the persons that you have heard speak evil of John Pigg, how are you able to say that his general moral character is bad?

A. I do not give Pigg confidence from what the above men say about him, Pigg, and I have no malice against Pigg.

By same: Q. Did you ever know of Calvin Wellman and John Pigg having any difficulty?

A. I think there was some hard feelings between Wellman and Pigg in reference to a settlement.

By same: Q. Are you well acquainted with John M. Rice; if yea, how long have you known him?

A. I am well acquainted with John M. Rice, and have known him ever since I was a small boy.

By same: Q. State if you knew of him to have given aid or comfort to the late rebellion or those in arms against the United States government, and is it or not a fact in the year 1861 John M. Rice was a warm advocate of Kentucky making a common cause with the South against the United States?

A. I never knew of John M. Rice giving aid or comfort to the late rebellion or those in arms against the government of the United States; John M. Rice and myself did not talk on political subjects in 1861.

By same: Q. Where was you when the fight occurred at Trout’s Hill in 1861?

A. I was near Catlettsburg, Kentucky.

By same: Q. Did you and John M. Rice encourage anyone to go and aid the rebels in that fight?

A. I did not.

By same: Q. Do you know where he was at that time?

A. I do not.

Re-examined by Rice’s counsel:

Q. Were you or not a Union man during the war?

A. I was a Union man; I aided and assisted the government up till 1862, at which time I did not and could not indorse the policy of the government, but was a Union man, and never was a rebel. STATE OF KENTUCKY, Boyd County, ss: R.H. MEEK.

I, J.D. Jones, notary public for Boyd County, do certify that the foregoing depositions of Daniel Hager, Randolph Batts, Thomas McKinster, Leo Frank, Charles Wilson, Charles R. Wilson, Graham Wilson, James D. Foster, and R.H. Meek was taken before me, and was read to and subscribed by them in my presence, at the time and place and in the action mentioned in the caption; the said Daniel Hager, Randolph Batts, Thomas McKinster, Leo Frank, Charles Wilson, Charles R. Wilson, Graham Wilson, James D. Foster, and R.H. Meek having been first sworn by me, that the evidence they should give in the action should be the truth, the whole truth, and nothing but the truth, and the statements of Daniel Hager, Leo Frank, Charles Wilson, Charles R Wilson, Graham Wilson, and R.H. Meek reduced to writing by me in their presence, and the statements of Randolph Batts, Thomas McKinster, and James D. Foster reduced to writing by them in my presence. The contestee, John M. Rice, and his attorneys, and the contestant, John L. Zeigler, and his attorneys, being present at the examination. Given under my hand and seal this 12th day of May, 1869. [SEAL.] Costs. J.D. JONES, Notary Public. Daniel Hager, attendance one day, and mileage, 130 miles. Randolph Batts, attendance one day. Thomas McKinster, attendance one day, and mileage, 90 miles. Leo Frank, attendance one day, and mileage, 54 miles. Charles Wilson, attendance one day, and mileage, 54 miles. Charles R. Wilson, attendance one day, and mileage, 54 miles. Graham Wilson, attendance one day, and mileage, 54 miles. James D. Foster, attendance one day. R.H. Meek, attendance one day, and mileage, 54 miles. Notary fee paid by J.M. Rice. $5 J.D. JONES, N.P. Notice.

SIR: Take notice that I will, upon the 17th of May next, (1869,) at the law office of John J. Allnut, in the city of Louisville, Kentucky, take the depositions of General Humphrey Marshall, and Blanton Duncan, residents of the county of Jefferson, State of Kentucky. The above depositions to be taken before John J. Allnut, notary public for Jefferson County, State of Kentucky, or some other person duly authorized by law to take depositions. The above depositions to be read as evidence in my behalf on the trial of the contest on notice of yourself, contesting my right to a seat as member elect to the forty-first Congress of the United States from the ninth congressional district of Kentucky. JOHN M. RICE. Mr. JOHN L. ZEIGLER. Executed by delivering a true copy of the within notice to J.L. Zeigler on the 16th day of April, 1869. STATE OF KENTUCKY, Boyd County, 88: R.B. MCCALL, deputy for J.C. EASTHAM, Sheriff Boyd County.

I, W.O. Hampton, clerk of the county court within and for the county and State aforesaid, do certify that R.B. McCall, the officer who executed the within notice, is now and was at the time of so doing an acting deputy sheriff of the county of Boyd, duly sworn as such, and that his signature thereto is genuine. Witness my hand and official seal this 16th day of April, A.D. 1869, W.O. HAMPTON, Clerk.

Deposition. The deposition of HUMPHREY MARSHALL, taken on the seventeenth day of May, 1869, at the office of John J. Allnut, in the city of Louisville, Kentucky, to be read as evidence in the trial of the contest to a seat as member elect to the forty-first Congress of the United States from the ninth congressional district of Kentucky, between John M. Rice, contestee, and John L. Zeigler, contestant, now pending before the Congress of the United States.

By contestee:

Interrogatory 1. State position held by you in the confederate service, and what department or district you commanded; what time you assumed command, and how long your service continued therein. State if you were acquainted with contestee, John M. Rice, during the late war; where you met him, and whether he was connected in any way with the army of the so-called Confederate States.

Answer. I was commissioned as a brigadier general in the army of the Confederate States on the last day of October 1861, and was assigned to a separate command. My instructions directed me to proceed to Prestonsburg, Kentucky, and to take command of “that frontier.” I assumed control, under these instructions, of the line from the mouth of the Sandy to Cumberland Gap or its vicinity. General Zollicoffer had a force at Cumberland Gap, and my “frontier” ended where his began. I left Wytheville, Virginia, for the front on the 9th of November, 1861; but my Virginia troops were not ready, and I did not reach Pound Gap until about the 1st of December. I think I commenced a forward movement on Prestonsburg about the 1st of December, 1861, and arrived near that town between that and Christmas. I remember that on Christmas day my headquarters were at Paintsville, some thirteen miles below Prestonsburg, on the Sandy River; and I had been there some days before Christmas day. I was alone in command of that frontier on the confederate side until the 18th of May, 1862, when I was ordered to report for duty to Major General Loring. I then tendered my resignation, which was accepted; but I was induced to return to my command early in July of 1862, and was again in command of the “army of Eastern Kentucky,” as the skeleton confederate force in that section was called. In the fall of 1862 I was again ordered to report to Major General Samuel Jones, who was placed in command of Southwestern Virginia; I remaining in charge of the force on the Kentucky and Sandy lines. Indeed, I may say no confederate commander but myself had control, or assumed any, from November 1861 to May 1863, when I was ordered to report to General Joseph Johnston, in Mississippi, which I did. My resignation as a confederate officer was finally accepted 17th June, 1863. When my troops arrived near Prestonsburg, in December 1861, I went in person to that village, and remember to have seen Mr. Rice, the contestee in this case, at Friend’s tavern, in Prestonsburg, on my visit there. He was not connected with the confederate army in any way. I thought he ought to be, and urged him to exert himself in raising a command; but he declined; at least he took no step in that direction. I remember this because I remember my solicitude upon the subject, as I knew the influence of his family in the mountain counties of Kentucky, and I was anxious to avail our cause of the benefit to result from such an accession. I failed to secure it in the person of Mr. Rice, and thought he was acting badly to refuse to give his services to a cause which then commanded my best wishes, and to which I was devoting my own energies. Mr. Rice did not connect himself with the confederate army while I was in command-at least not with that portion of it operating in Southwest Virginia and Kentucky. Had he done so, I should certainly have known it, and I did not know of it, never heard of it, and do not now recognize any service rendered to the confederate cause by Mr. Rice, by personal service, or by correspondence, or information given or conveyed, or connection in any way. I do not remember to have seen John M. Rice again after I left Prestonsburg. I fought with Colonel Garfield, within four miles of Prestonsburg, 10th January, 1862; and Rice was not with my forces, nor did he yield any assistance to me. After that fight I rested at Martin’s Mills (eight miles from where we fought) until sometime in February, (after the battle at Donelson,) when the confederate secretary of war ordered me to fall back into Virginia, which I did. I never saw or heard of John M. Rice during that winter, or afterward, during the war, that I can remember, though I had intercourse with great numbers of the mountain people.

By contestee: Int. 2. Was not your position such, as commander of the forces operating in Eastern Kentucky, that you knew all those who were in your command or department who held the rank of captain or lieutenant? State whether or not Rice could have held either of said positions in the so-called confederate service without your knowing or having personal knowledge of the fact.

A. A roster of all commissioned officers was kept by my adjutant general at my headquarters, and I had access to it, of course. I did not know personally many who were under my command who held the rank of captain and lieutenant; but I am positive Mr. Rice held no such rank, because his name would at once have attracted my notice; and from my solicitude that he should join me I should have seen him personally to use him in furtherance of my military views. His name was not on the roster of my officers, and he was not in my army.

By contestant:

Q. State at what time you first commenced pressing men in the ninth congressional district for the confederate service .

A. No man was ever pressed into that service, to my knowledge, while I commanded—not one single case.

By same: Q. Was John S. Williams one of the colonels under your command?

A. He was under my command from the time I arrived at Pound Gap (about 1st December 1861,) until May 1862. He had been at Prestonsburg, Kentucky, in the fall of 1861, with authority to raise one regiment or more, before I went to that frontier. When I arrived, he had retreated before General Nelson from Prestonsburg to a point four or five miles behind Pound Gap, on the Virginia side.

By same: Q. Did Colonel Williams impress any men into the confederate service; if so, when and where?

A. If he ever did, I never heard of it.

By same: Q. In your conversations with the people in that section of the country, did you not find many Union men-men opposed to the success of the confederate cause; and where parties expressed decided Union sentiments, did you urge them to join the confederate forces and think, upon their refusal, that they were acting badly in refusing to give their services to the confederate cause; or did you only regard those as acting badly who expressed sympathy with, but refused to cooperate with, the confederacy?

A. Men who openly expressed opposition to the confederate cause did not frequently invite conversations with me upon the subject, though I did converse with some who were very decided in their Union sentiments. When a man was decided in his opposition, I let him go his way. I never did violence to any man because he was a Union man. If I placed before him the reasons upon which my own mind had acted, and he adhered to his preconceived opinions, I let him alone because I thought he would not cooperate with me. I never urged any but active young men, or men in the prime of life, to enter the service of the confederacy. It depended on the opinions they held, whether I thought they acted badly, or otherwise. If a man believed he should adhere to the Union, no matter what the course of the government might be, and expressed to me the opinion that we were right, but would not fight himself, I thought he acted badly; but if he was in sentiment opposed to our success, and adhered to government because he approved its course, I did not think he acted badly in squaring his conduct with his opinions. I addressed the people at Prestonsburg in a public speech when I was there, and gave them my reasons publicly for the course I had taken. When I found a man who was inquiring, I talked to him and attempted to color his opinions and to bring his judgment to coincide with mine; but if he was determined, I did not urge him.

By same: In your conversation with contestee, what opinions did he express; was he, at the time or times when the conversation or conversations between you and he occurred, in sympathy with the confederate cause? Did he express sympathy for the confederate cause; and ifso, what did he say in that particular?

A. I am under the impression that our conversation did not enter upon the discussion of the subject. I was at Prestonsburg one night and most of the next day. I saw Mr. Rice at the tavern shortly after my arrival, and I suggested my desire as to what his course should be. My recollection is he had some other business which led him in a different course from that I desired him to take, and that I became assured he would not take the course I desired, and did not urge him further; indeed, I have an impression on my mind that Mr. Rice was polite at our meeting, but did not seek to prolong our interview, and that our conversation was casual. It is my desire in the case that I remember, and its failure, rather than anything he either said or did. I know he did not come into my wishes, and so we parted. I don’t remember anything he said so as to repeat even its substance.

By same: Q. Did he announce to you then that he was a Union man and opposed to the success of the confederacy, or anything to this effect?

A. I have already said I cannot repeat even the substance of what he said; but I have no memory of his expressing his devotion to the Union or opposition to my course; if I had any recollection of what he did say, I should have stated it. If you want to know what impression is upon my mind, I will say that I have an impression that Mr. Rice was at Prestonsburg because it was more comfortable to him about that time, as one who did not mean to be a combatant, than Pikeville, or more advanced positions, and that on meeting me he did not in the slightest degree abandon his determination to avoid taking part in the strife going on. I don’t believe he went into a report of his opinions to me as to the merits of the controversy.

By same: Q. But you did urge the contestee to unite with you in securing confederate success?

A. I think it probable I did express, in the most forcible language and manner of which I was capable, my own view of the situation, for that was the policy on which I was acting at the time, but what the contestee said in reply I do not recollect at all; I only remember he convinced me that I had no chance to engage him in our cause and that I regretted at the time that I could not.

By same: Q. Is it or not true that in the fall of 1861, and January 1862, any persons had to leave that country for the purpose of preventing their impressment into the confederate service? Is it true that contestee had to leave that country at that time for that purpose?

A. What may have occurred before I arrived in December, I know not. After December 1861, it is not true that any man had to leave his home because of fear of being impressed into the confederate service. The conscription act was passed in April 1862, but it had no application to Kentucky, and had I seen a Kentuckian impressed into the service within the bounds of my command I should have discharged him instantly. My Kentuckians were all volunteers. I did discharge the Fifth Kentucky regiment from service-at least the twelve-months volunteers-on the march from Kentucky, in the fall of 1862, (October,) near Hazel Green. I never knew a conscript who was worth shooting and I never wanted one; and would have rid myself of them at once, whenever I could at any stage of the war. HUMPHREY MARSHALL.

STATE OF KENTUCKY, County of Jefferson, 88: I, J.J. Allnutt, notary public for Jefferson County, do certify that the foregoing deposition of Humphrey Marshall was taken before me, and was read to and subscribed by him in my presence, at the time and place and in the trial mentioned in the caption; the said Marshall having been first sworn by me that the evidence he should give in the trial should be the truth, the whole truth and nothing but the truth, and his statements reduced to writing by him in my presence; the contestee and the counsel for the contestant being present at the examination. Given under my hand this 17th day of May, 1869. [SEAL.] STATE OF KENTUCKY, Jefferson County, set: J.J. ALLNUTT, Notary Public for Jefferson County, Kentucky.

I, T. Jack Conn, clerk of the county court of the county aforesaid, do certify that J.J. Allnutt, whose genuine signature appears to the foregoing certificate, is now, and was at the time of signing the same, an acting notary public in and for said county, duly commissioned and qualified, and that all his official acts as such are entitled to full faith and credit. Given under my hand and the official seal of court at office in Louisville, Kentucky, this 17th day of May, 1869. [SEAL.] T. JACK CONN, Clerk Jefferson County Court.

ADDITIONAL TESTIMONY IN THE CONTESTED ELECTION CASE OF ZEIGLER vs. RICE. JUNE 10, 1870. Ordered to be printed. WASHINGTON, June 9, 1870.

JAMES A. GARFIELD, a representative from the State of Ohio, in the United States House of Representatives, examined by Mr. CHURCHILL:

Question. You were in command in the State of Kentucky, in the latter part of the year 1861, and the early part of the year 1862?

Answer. I was in command at that time in the Sandy Valley district of Eastern Kentucky.

Q. While in command there, was Mr. Rice, now the sitting member from the ninth district of Kentucky, taken prisoner by a portion of your force?

A. He was not taken prisoner by any portion of my force. He was brought as a prisoner by some citizens of Kentucky to the headquarters of my command.

Q. Did you make any examination at that time in respect to his conduct in regard to the conflict that was going on?

A. Yes, sir; I did.

Q. State whether Mr. Martin Thornbury was examined by you in connection with the matter.

A. I cannot say whether his name was Martin. Mr. Thornbury was the principal person concerned. I believe there were two or three with him. I know I examined him in regard to his reasons for arresting Mr. Rice and bringing him before the commanding officer.

Q. What were his statements in that regard?

A. It is so long ago that I cannot give them with anything like verbal accuracy. I can only say what was my custom generally, and what I remember now concerning this case. I asked Mr. Thornbury to tell his story; to tell why he brought Mr. Rice there, and to state what he knew about his conduct. My purpose was to examine him so far as to satisfy myself whether the case was one that, as a military officer of the government, I should take cognizance of. He stated that Mr. Rice was a member of the Kentucky legislature. That fact at that time, to my mind, seemed to be prima facie against Mr. Rice, so far as his loyalty was concerned. Still, I did not consider it as conclusive. I asked Thornbury whether he had any evidence that Mr. Rice belonged to the rebel army. He stated that he found him twelve or fifteen miles south of my encampment, and in the neighborhood where the rebel army had recently been. Whether he stated that he found him actually within their lines, I do not remember; but their lines had very recently been pushed further south, as the result of a battle which occurred on the 10th of January, 1862, near Prestonsburg, twelve miles south of my headquarters. Mr. Rice was brought to me about the 14th of January, 1862. I further examined him as to any evidence he might possess that Mr. Rice belonged to any rebel force. There was no evidence given to me that he belonged to the rebel army, nor that he had done any overt act which would justify me in regarding him as a soldier or an enemy. After hearing what Mr. Thornbury had to say, I think (without being perfectly certain) that I examined one or two of the persons who came with him. I do not remember their names nor the details of their evidence; but the result of my examination was that I did not find sufficient ground to hold him as a prisoner or to send him to Camp Chase, Ohio, where I sent our prisoners of war.

Q. Did Mr. Thornbury say anything to you at that time about Mr. Rice having told him that he had a confederate commission as captain, or that he would have had such a commission in a few days?

A. I do not remember anything of that sort.

Q. Or that he would have taken command of a company if he had not been caught?

A. I could not say at this distance of time that he did not say that; I can only say that I do not remember such a statement.

Q. The result of your examination was giving him a letter, was it not?

A. Yes, sir. If the committee will allow me, I will state how I disposed of persons arrested by citizens or by my own troops. If I found satisfactory evidence that they were in actual communication with the rebel army, and aiding the enemy, I sent them to Camp Chase, at Columbus, Ohio, as prisoners. There was a second class against whom the evidence was not so strong, but sufficiently strong to lead me to suppose that they were at least likely to take an active part against us. With such I adopted the plan of requiring them to give bonds, and take and subscribe an oath not to take any part against our troops. These bonds required that if they were found committing any overt act, it was a confession of the forfeiture expressed in the bonds. A third class I required to give their word of honor that they would not take any part against the United States, but would remain peaceable citizens . To these I gave a written discharge. Such a paper I gave to Mr. Rice.

Q. Is the paper printed on page 54 of the evidence such a paper as you refer to?

A. Yes, sir.

By Mr. BURR:

Q. Did you give a full opportunity to the parties who came with Mr. Rice to present all their charges, and make known their information, whatever it was, against him?

A. I requested Mr. Thornbury to make a full statement of the grounds on which he arrested Mr. Rice, for the purpose of ascertaining whether he ought to be held as a prisoner of war.

Q. Under the rules and system of classification which you have stated to the committee, if any statement had been given of Mr. Rice having admitted to Mr. Thornbury before that time that he was a rebel officer in possession of such a commission, or that he would soon receive such a commission, would you have been likely to have granted this parole, and discharged him?

A. I do not think I should. I know I sent a number of persons to Camp Chase as prisoners, and afterward found I had ruled severely against them, and recommended their release. I will say, moreover, that this arrest of Mr. Rice occurred four days after an engagement with the enemy near Prestonsburg, twelve miles south of Paintsville, in which, though the rebels were driven, I was fearing at that time, apprehending, that re-enforcements might be coming to them from Virginia, and I was giving to my own command the benefit of all doubts. I sent a number of prisoners away to Camp Chase on much weaker ground than the confession that they had held rebel commissions. I do not, however, positively say that Mr. Thornbury did not make such a statement.

Q. And if he did, you say your ruling would have been different from what it was in this case?

A. I think so.

Q. When Mr. Rice was brought before you, had he on a rebel uniform or any equipage bearing any insignia of being connected with the army?

A. None whatever. As a matter of fact, at the time Mr. Rice was brought to me, the rebel army in my front had retired, after the fight, a number of miles further south than the place where he was arrested.

Q. He was arrested between the lines of the two armies?

A. Yes, sir; the rebel lines had covered the place where he was arrested until a few days before, and he may have been within their lines until after the battle of the 10th January; but at the time of his arrest, he was between the lines of the two armies.

Q. Let me ask you a question in regard to the condition of non-combatants in that country at that time; whether it was not such as would lead any party suspected of giving aid to the rebel cause to be informed of?

A. There was great violence of feeling between the Union and the disunion elements in that valley. Murders were not infrequent on either side; there were some shocking cases perpetrated in the valley while I was there. I recollect, for instance, that an old man and his son were murdered because they were Union men. The young man was hanged in the sight of his father and mother; and the father was then shot. Such inhumanities caused a similar feeling and course of conduct on the other side. I recollect that a prominent citizen of Piketon, Judge Cecil, I think, was captured by some of my troops, and, probably within fifteen minutes after being captured by a squadron of Ohio cavalry, a Kentucky regiment of infantry came up, and a soldier of the regiment, who knew Judge Cecil, leveled his musket and shot him, notwithstanding he was a prisoner of war. I give this as an illustration of the feeling which was very prevalent at that time in that locality.

Q. How long did you remain with your command in Sandy Valley after the battle you have spoken of?

A. I remained in the valley until about the end of March 1862, when I left the valley and joined the main army.

Q. During this period were your headquarters at any time at Piketon?

A. I was there some time, I think at least a month; my headquarters were at Paintsville for two or three weeks after the battle at Prestonsburg; I then advanced further up the valley to Piketon.

Q. I believe you stated that Mr. Thornbury was not connected with your command?

A. He was not, as I remember, a soldier at all; at any rate, he was not a soldier in my command.

Q. After you went to Piketon did you see him there?

A. He may have been there; I have no recollection of seeing him there. I perhaps should say that after I had been in the valley some time a part of a Kentucky regiment, under Colonel Lindsey, was added to my command, and Mr. Thornbury may have been connected with that regiment; whether he was or not I do not know. I have no recollection of seeing him after he brought Mr. Rice to my headquarters.

Q. After you came to Piketon, persons suspected by the Union people were still, from time to time, brought to your headquarters?

A. Yes, sir.

Q. And investigations were made from time to time?

A. I regularly investigated every case brought to my attention, and so considerable was the number that there were almost always some persons waiting at the guard-house their turn for examination; after which they were disposed of, either by release or by sending to Camp Chase.

Q. State whether any other or further complaints were made of the conduct of Mr. Rice, after the examination you have testified to, and after your headquarters were removed to Piketon.

A. I remember no other.

Q. I think you knew Mr. Rice personally before you met him in Kentucky?

A. Only in this way: There was a meeting (in 1860) of the Ohio legislature, of which I was a member, with the legislatures of Tennessee and Kentucky, a year or two before that, and he was one of the party. I simply recognized the fact that he was one of the persons I had met. It was a casual meeting in a public place. I had no personal acquaintance with him other than that.

By Mr. ZEIGLER, ( contestant:)

Q. Did you have Mr. Thornbury sworn at this time?

A. I think not. I did not usually go into the formality of administering oaths to witnesses in these examinations.

Q There was no oath administered to him at all before taking this testimony?

A. I think not.

Q. Did you ask him where he had captured Mr. Rice, and whether it was within the confederate lines?

A. I do not think I put that direct question to him. I did understand from his statement that he captured Mr. Rice a little above Prestonsburg.

Q. Did you inquire of Mr. Thornbury whether Mr. Rice was in the confederate army?

A. I do not remember whether I did or not.

Q. You did not go into such an examination as you would have done if you were examining a witness under oath?

A. I never conducted these examinations as I would an examination in court. I merely satisfied my own mind as to what my action ought to be; of course, I had the discretion to do what I thought best.

Q. If this had been taken as testimony it would have been a different examination?

A. If I had been conducting anything like a legal examination, of course it would have been much more formal.

Q. You could not say that Mr. Rice did not act in concert with the rebels?

A. No, I could not say that; I could only say that I had no knowledge of his having done so.

Q. You had no personal knowledge of him previous to that time, nor had you any personal acquaintance with him?

A. Except as I have stated. I knew that he was a member of the legislature of Kentucky, and, as I stated in the beginning, I considered that rather against him.

By Mr. RICE, (sitting member:)

Q. Did you not find the Union men of Sandy Valley quite ready to give information of those who entertained sentiments different from their own?

A. I can say, generally, that numerous complaints were lodged against persons holding sentiments hostile to the Union, and that in many instances, on examination, I found that these complaints had their origin in private animosity. I do not want this remark to apply to the case under consideration. I had no reason to believe that Mr. Thornbury acted from any such motive.

Q. But in this case you entered into the investigation fully enough to satisfy yourself that I was not connected with the rebel army?

A. I answer that by saying that I found no evidence to make me believe it was so, or to make me so strongly suspect it as to hold Mr. Rice for further investigation. I may say, however, that I thought I saw clearly that his sympathies were not with us; but the question of his sympathy was a matter it was not for me to deal with. The question what he had done or was likely to do was the only one I endeavored to ascertain.

By Mr. BURR:

Q. Your original regiment was the Forty-second Ohio?

A. I was colonel of the Forty-second Ohio volunteers, and acting commander of the Twentieth brigade of the Army of the Ohio.

Q Lionel A. Sheldon was the lieutenant colonel of the Forty-second regiment?

A. Yes, sir; he was in command of the regiment while I was in command of the brigade.

By Mr. CHURCHILL:

Q. Was he present during this examination?

A. I cannot say positively. There was almost always some officer present at these examinations. Colonel Sheldon sometimes conducted them, by my direction. I cannot say whether he was present during this examination or not. Lieutenant Clapp, my adjutant, was present, I remember, and wrote the letter which is here in evidence; and what other officers I am now unable to say.

WASHINGTON, D.C., June 9, 1870.

LIONEL A. SHELDON, a representative in Congress from the State of Louisiana, examined:

By Mr. CHURCHILL:

Question. You were Lieutenant Colonel of the Forty-second Ohio Volunteers in the latter part of 1861, and early part of 1862?

Answer. I was. Colonel Garfield was colonel.

Q. Were you with that regiment under Colonel Garfield at the time when Mr. Rice, the sitting member in this case, was brought in a prisoner?

A. I was in command of the regiment; Colonel Garfield was in command of the expedition.

Q. Were you present when an examination was made by General Garfield as to the relation held by Mr. Rice?

A. I was a portion of the time. I remember an examination was made. I remember seeing Mr. Rice, and that I was present during some portion of the time.

Q. Were you present when Mr. Rice made his statement to General Garfield?

A. I am unable to say whether I was or not. I do not think I recollect the name of any witness now except Mr. Dils, if he was a witness at all. I only mention him because I remember him afterward, and knew him better than the other persons connected with this case. Of course, I never expected the matter would come up in any connection that would make it important to charge my mind with details.

Q. Did you hear the statements, or parts of the statements, of any of the witnesses examined by General Garfield?

A. I heard some portion of the examination.

Q. Was anything said by any person examined by General Garfield, in your hearing, as to whether Mr. Rice had made any statement that he had or expected to have a commission in the rebel army?

A. I think not; I have no recollection of any such thing; and my belief is that if anything of that kind had been said, or anything looking to it, Mr. Rice would have been sent to Camp Chase; that is my belief. General Garfield was very rigid in that respect, and I am very sure that if there had been anything of the kind said Mr. Rice would have been sent to Camp Chase.

By Mr. BURR:

Q. You were in the regiment at that time?

A. I was during the entire campaign.

Q. You became conversant with the charges against Mr. Rice, so far as to make it clear to your mind now that there was no testimony that he had made any admission of having a commission in the rebel army in his possession, or that he expected one?

A. My impression is very decided that there was nothing in any of the statements made looking to any such fact; while I cannot remember specific statements made, I am clear as to the result that he would have been sent a prisoner to Camp Chase if any such statement had been made.

Q. Was there any unwillingness manifested upon the part of witnesses against Mr. Rice to state anything that would be to his disadvantage?

A. I think not. The feeling at that time was exceedingly bitter. My experience was that men did not have to be pressed very much to tell anything they knew against a man occupying a position on the other side of the conflict that was going on. There was an exceedingly bitter state of feeling in that country on both sides.

Q. State whether that feeling did not manifest itself more particularly among Kentuckians toward each other than toward the people from other States.

A. That is what I mean. I remember that Mr. Rice was said to be a member of the legislature. I do not know that I spoke to him, or had any conversation with him personally.

Q. Does your memory bring to mind the fact whether the fact of being a member of the legislature was the principal count against him?

A. I remember it was stated that he was recognized as a prominent man, and that he had been a member of the legislature.

Q. Did you say that you afterward became acquainted with Mr. Dils?

A. Yes, sir; I afterward met him. I think he became a colonel in the United States Army. He lived at Piketon, I think. I recollect to have met him there. The regiment he was subsequently colonel of, however, did not exist at that time. He was never with us in our command.

By Mr. ZEIGLER, (contestant:)

Q. You say you were not present during the examination of the witnesses in this case except casually?

A. I was present a portion of the time. I remember the fact that General Garfield conducted the examination. I conducted a great many of the examinations at his instance; sometimes he conducted them and sometimes we did it together. In this case I did not participate.

By Mr. CHURCHILL:

Q. You don’t remember whether Mr. Thornbury was examined in your presence?

A. I do not remember the names of the witnesses. I know that whenever there was any reasonable ground of suspicion of a prisoner having any connection with the rebel army, he was sent to Camp Chase. We went there to crush out the rebellion; we did not mince matters. General Garfield was very decisive in his policy- very vigorous, exceedingly so. He was one of the men who started out with the idea that the rebellion had to be crushed with severe measures.

By Mr. RICE, (sitting member:)

Q. Did you find the Union men of Sandy Valley not only willing, but very ready and willing, to give information against those suspected of entertaining rebel sentiments or of being connected with the rebels?

A. They were very ready to do so. My experience was that where there was any sort of personal feeling they were not only willing to give information, but they took a great deal of pains to give it. It seemed to me that there was a class of people in that valley who took advantage of the revolutionary times to satisfy their own private vengeance.

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^[1] John Ficklin was a tan yard operator from Bath County.  He was the founder of the Rebel camp on the May farm in Prestonsburg which grew to be Camp Smith, commanded by Colonel John S. Williams.  Ficklin went to Missouri after the war.