Capt. Henry Skillman resided near El Paso for many years previous to the
Civil War. He was a Kentuckian, a man of magnificent physique, over six
feet tall, wearing long, sandy hair and a beard flowing to his girdle.
He was an Indian fighter, mail contractor, and a guide and scout for the
United States troops and for wagon trains through the Indian country. He
was the Kit Carson of this section. He was highly esteemed, almost
beloved, by the people of the valley, of both races.
He had one fault. At rare intervals he would get very drunk and become
wild and ride his horse into the stores and saloons of the village,
firing his pistol the while, and order everybody to close up, as he
desired to run the town himself. Then he would go home and sober up and
come to town, pay the damages and apologize to every one and then go
about his business.
As an offset to this peculiarity he would not allow any other man to
play the same role, when he was around. Once, when a stranger attempted
it, and everybody, including the peace officers, was terrified, Skillman
was notified, and came up, sober, took away the ruffian’s arms, boxed
his jaws, and notified him to leave town, which he did.
On another occasion, 1857, when my brother Anson had accused two El Paso
men of counterfeiting, they plotted to assassinate him on the street,
and then to swear that the killing was accidental. As they approached my
brother, pretending to be very drunk, Skillman saw and understood the
maneuver, and, springing to the rescue, called out: “Look out there,
Mills; they are going to kill you.”
When the secession talk commenced, it was known to me and to a few
others that Skillman, although his associates were nearly all
Confederates, inclined strongly to the Union side; but he finally “went
with his State,” and in 1864 he, with a small band of Confederates, was
acting as a scout and keeping up communication between San Antonio and
the Confederate colony at Juarez, Mexico, near El Paso.
General Carleton, then in command of New Mexico, decided upon the
capture of Skillman and his party, and for that service he selected
Capt. Albert H. French, of the California Volunteer Cavalry.
General Carleton was present at El Paso when French left on this
dangerous expedition, and I KNOW that he gave French special
instructions to bring Skillman in alive “if possible,” and I know the
reason for this order.
French was a Boston man. He was as large and as well formed as Skillman,
and, like him, was of sandy complexion, hair and beard.
Skillman and his party were near Presidio del Norte en route for Juarez
when Captain French (himself unseen) discovered them and watched them go
into camp (April 3, 1864).
At midnight, French, with a portion of his little command, including two
citizens of San Elizario, _crawled_ into Skillman’s camp, and, rising to
their feet, called for surrender. Skillman arose, armed, and refused,
when French shot him dead.
In the volley which followed two more of Skillman’s party were killed
and two wounded. The others surrendered and were brought to San
Elizario.
There were citizens of El Paso county in each of these parties, some of
whom are still living.
I regret to see that Col. George W. Baylor has been led, by false
information, no doubt, into doing some injustice to the memory of the
gallant Captain French.
In a late communication to the El Paso Herald the colonel says: “Captain
French killed or rather massacred Capt. James Skillman, who was in the
C. S. A. and on picket duty in the Davis mountains. They had been
personal friends, and through treachery French had located Skillman and
killed him. It has been said that the matter so preyed on French’s mind
that it became unbalanced before his death.”
Colonel Baylor is himself an old soldier, justly proud of his record,
and he should be careful not to place too much reliance on the
statements of others. It is impossible that French and Skillman could
have been “friends,” as the colonel states, because they had never met
each other till that fateful night. And again, the colonel shows lack of
information by speaking of Skillman as “James” instead of Henry.
Captain French’s conduct was soldierly and commendable.
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