To his Excellency T E Bramlett
Govenor of Kentucky

Your Petitioners Josiah B Skaggs & William C Thompson would respectfully State to your Excellency that at the fall term 1862 of the Taylor circuit court that the Grand jury of said county found a true Bill against each of your Petitioners for a breach of the Peace which was alledged to have been committed in said county some time before your Petitioners State that in the fall of 1861 & winter & spring of 1862 they belonged to a company of home Guards organized in Green county and still belong to said company They state that they were ordered and directed by Gen W. T Ward and Col E H Hobson (now Brig General) to patrol the counties of Green and Taylor and to arrest all suspicious persons and to give to the Military authorities all the information they could in regard to the movements of Guerillas and spies belonging to the Confederate States & army your Petitioners State that they were engaged for nearly two years as above stated and that they did arrest numbers of rebel soldiers and did give to the Military authorities information in regard to the movements of confederate Soldiers often at the risk of their lives Your Petitioners state that they were furnished with arms and ammunition by Generals Ward Hobson & by Genl Boyle and they refer your Excellency to Generals Ward & Hobson for the duty which they performed and also the manner in which said service was rendered They State that on one occasion while they were discharging the above mentioned duties they were in Taylor County and that they did arrest

Some individuals who were Rebels and that said arrests were made at a public sale they state that some attempt was made to resist said arrests and that they simply acted on the defensive and that they did not at any time interfere in any way with said sale or any person except some two individuals whom they arrested as for giving information and assistance to Rebel Soldiers who were then constantly passing through the county The state that the parties arrested were released immediately after your petitioners were Satisfied that they were not guilty of the alledged offense and that they at no time either directly or indirectly caused any disturbance but for this offense they were Indicted by the Grand jury of Taylor county and fined as before Stated the Sum of thirty eight dollars each Wherefore they pray your Excellency to remit Said fine and in duty bound they will in duty bound ever pray &c

J. B. Skaggs
W^m. C. Thompson

Sworn to & subscribed before me by J B Skaggs & William C Thompson this 5^th day of Oct 1864

D T Towles C. G. C. C

Please direct answer to D T Towles Greensburg Ky

I am well acquainted with, the petitioners Skaggs & Thompson they ^are^ true, loyal, and were armed by me as home guards and authorized to arrest and carry to the nearest military commander any disloyal man, or any person aiding or abetting the rebel cause, that I also know said Shofner & Tively and that are both rebels. rabid & violent, and would ^be^ willingly aid the rebel cause, and both ought to be placed under oaths shewing bonds and this ought still to be done but I learn has not been done — Skaggs & Thompson have done as much if not more than any two men in this region to aid the Union cause & suppress the rebellion, and I therefore hope the fine may be released, for I think the arrest of these men deserves praise rather than censure; a reward, instead of a fine

W. T Ward
Br Genl.

Taylor Cir Ct
vs
J B Skaggs & W^m C. Thompson
B Peace
Remit
$38. each
8^th Oct/64