The daily dispatch. [volume] (Richmond [Va.]) 1850-1884, 1861-03-04
Rirhintnnh 9ispatrt.
MONDAY MORNING. MARCH la,
IcoNcLCnRn !

Ioud Whisper, butI did not ouite cate
on = u i'm ana 30 'houghtit simpler to 6
"hait-.fronti" cried I, and they halted an,
,N oot, alas, their backs were turned &
tue oia guard, Ia whose ranks, l think.
heard an insubordiuate gisgle
however, / counter. marched nv men. an,
men the old guard presented arms to us ant
represented arms 10 the old guard and som,
VI the new guard Were marched of to reliey,
tne sehtries and apologized TO the old guar
omeer, youth OF eight teen who graciousl,
patronized me, and told me that should d,
better another time. lie also kindly gave m,
aup Tor the Csmor,dgeshire Stakes, and i'm
pa ted other valuable informal ton, until All
his sentries being ga thered in, he marched hi,
party of, ana behiad him wer>closad a.
barred those gates beyond which 1t was mn,
iaWtui Tor me TO pass for TWEEN y four ho,r.
As general rule, the fact of be;nc CO.. a..
in any particular place, however nIeasan,
would MAKE me long TO get out of II hut =,
present mad no such wish, for the noyeIty
OF the position had roman tic char, H., >
which quite reconciled me To tho i,r,,; A.
nIeht. iweh Two marines. some of th.,,
oronzed and decorated men who had h,ei,
lol se'ert years the battle and the breeze
~e.e uhoer my command; and IT was m :,
HTst taste OF power, for being a oui., ,,'ar ~
aheh pecSed, II had never occurred IN mo .,
exercise authority at home. Then I W. i, n
,haSn'n position no one could come into
w ara without my permission and il
neIhs,sted on forcing his way by cIiInh,nr
oNe' Tue wall or otherwise, / miy6t.-migbt 7
o oars1 n,m 10 be bayoneteds Yes; l might
CERTAINTY do so, and the sentry wo,,ld u.s.
biy obey me, but should l he hurr g
giving such an order nuns ioi
ms oeing point worthy OF serious consid-
ssa'ion, l took the board OF orders down from
me antel-piece, and seating mvsaIr nn -
trnckis- bed, which, with table two cbo;rs
an ihkstino, a peg n CRATE a coal-scutt;e
ana broken poker. formed the furniture of.
'Hs guard room, commenced an Investigation
VI the duties of my position, which led IN ,
iartner reVerie upon my present dignity ana
the magnitude of the in tarests confi1ad 10 M :,
charge one OF them being powder -mapazine
oi 30 TIC knsh a constitution that the smoking
OF pipe in the guari-room a ouar,.r ~ rs
mile on, could not be INDUCED in ,yithor,
running the risk of lowing up half The 80,
WIN q iaT proportion of those gun boats and
Igates TOT which we pay such tidy IirtIe
OH every year and the idea of the b,r, NO
sloiiity Oh the taxes of the country being in
creased by any such negligence ofmine, m ,de
me shudder. While coxitating in this ny,v
uck VI W experience certain uneasy sensations
In the region OF the stomach which nv ana hv
IesoiNsu themselN rs into a yearning for tea
ano o.eaa ana butter, and in due time it oc.
CURED 10 me that l had not breakfastad :
" nat was TO be done7 | had not saen nv
servant before leaving the barrack suuarr and
as had selected the lad for his honesty rather
than ms Intelligence, / knew he would nevsr
come to look after me without exnress ord,rs
10 that effect. l must have patience but va,
whst was the use of thatY Patience is a very
Rood thing for the toothache, bee tuse one lives
In Lopes OF Its going off; but hunger never
goes OIL" ''
Well, well, it was no great hardship after
al 10 go without breakfast for once The
worst of IL WIS, that the difficulty woula ra
cur at Dime time |
These dismal reflections were brokan in |
pou oy the sergeant, who appeared at the |
doorway, and asked if l would choose to visit |
the sentries, which fort with began IN do
ana rs varied the amusement by in vestiy,
tions OF all the objects ofinterest in the place
II LOOK me couple OF hours to go the rounds
First OF all, L came 10 large BUILDING whara |
boiler plates were being drilled round the
edges with small holes for the riyets. ana I |
stood for n long time watching the uunch |
pressing out the little circular bits of iron
with that ease and neatness peculiar to the ir |
resisuble force of steam, till q workman of
" hom ask9f some question remarked, that
one would mink 1t was going into so much
cneesS, and the men ton of that cOm.stibla
was too much for a furnished Welshman Nor
lar from TINS workshop, l came upon nv first
sentry, VINO ported arms and proceeded TO r.. |
peat MS ofuerS, which were printed up in his
sentry box There We're under his care n
crow bar, which he was to give up when re-
Y ueSted TO the dock yard police, and a life |
buoy, which he was TO throw to any one
whom ne saw struggling in the water He |
wis also to challenge any one who annroach |
ed MS post after dark 10 fire Off a blank car |
fridge IN case of fire and, above all, to alloy
no one to smoke either on the wharf or ~, |
board the shipping moored Off if All mi no |
repeated In Il breath, like a child saving its
catechism and passed on, and spent hair
IN ho4r In watching the prodigies performed
oy Fuicanic hammer, though, if Vulcan can
MT half as hard that, | pity poor Vanns
when he comes home jealous and nectarv
L men came an interview with another sentry. +
Lhen L watched the process of razapng >,
three decker that would not sail i'm Ia, FL. =,
mat would after which came more sentrias
Ill OF whom told their little tale so .xactIv IN
,he same way, that grew weary and deter !
hined 10 dodge the next. This was a tall .
turdy, red faced lad, evidently not long from
nc plough, VINO, when L came upon him | /
ound a corner, was standing gazing into his b
ENTRY box, reading the orders there nrintad | 4
Up, evidently examining for his apnroachin@ .
On hearing my fooistens hs
aced about and ported his arms
10 you know your orders - said !,
'Esssir, - he replied.
wen, then If L man fell off that vessel 3
nto the water, and you saw that he was y
no Wning, what would you do''' n
Poor fellow l never saw more uttar and a.
opeiess beWilderment expressed on moral :
ace. l repeated the question in rs clear and q
nipple way as l could ~
lied s III re- r
1 tried to explain t. him the inutili,v of - Ii
row. bar to drowning man. - "
fne blank cartridge at 'un ~ WAS his =
acond guess, and gave him up in DESPAIR -
only after that, l did not walk so close 10 .
he edge OF the quay as had been previously r
Ding.
a, al some little distance from the workshops 81
Id dry docks, but close to the wateredga 81
ooo square, low, wndowiess stone bui1d no
Y, encompassed on the land side nv a DIV Ia
o1t, in which perambulated a marine TIKI, no no
que ouiloihg was the Magazine, and as nv alb
ard of orders direc ted me to examine W. ca,
er there were any marks of lucifer- matches ito
the walls, descended in to the moat. aud kn
mmenced a careful scrutiny ~ KIN
Inc door is round here sir ~ cried tho al $40
h'shed sergeant, evidently thinking that I az
rs searching for the entrance which vJ,s a.
rtaniy small. On my rejoinins him ha vic
'iied an iron handle, which produced !, dis. on
NJ ghostly tinkle, and it was not without a ine
rtain treptdation that heard a footsten his
ID the Jinglng of many keys, for l exnectaf IN
entering, to md myself in II 10 W dark yault IRE
led with loose gunpo WIDER, rs a praparv is rs
TN corn, and was rather disaapointed al
ousn renewed, when the guaiN4in of the str
ice usnered me into an open courtyard sur gis
unded by stone cells with iron doors Wban o
iad Intercepted the sentry who was pacing | IN
IS court, was conducted through two L
Yes, when were carefully locked behind us. ing
uisinai place where We're a flight of stems | car
aiding down to the water and here anothar BIZ
AIRY was posted whom pitied; for shouId s s1We
I myself like TO be locked out from H. 3 Is
orid oy three doors in such a place. Rnt | nh,
nat OF the man with the KEYS. who lat ma xc,
and conducted me round Does he iir. 'n | ana
~ place! Has he wife and family any PHI
ierer is his life insured and if so is in in Pc
ire or lie office, and what premium does he N
ms ne ever known the joys of tobacco? | +, W
IL lawful for him TO feed upon anytbing IL,
ar M II az"
own that breathed more freely az s,.,,
y QUIZ or the Magazine, and taking NV fe
ord, which had had 10 leave outsda f.
sergeant, l bent my steps back To the nj
ard room " 'Ao crst
The walk had been highly interesting hu, | bral
iad sharpened my appetite wofulIy on
au no DOCKS, out my predecessor had for su.s
ia,eiy left behind him plentiful supply of ww11f
lung paper, with which l procesded ~ I'm an
w up the report which had TO be sent in on | Gins