The weekly Ottumwa courier. [volume] (Ottumwa, Iowa) 1857-1872, 1861-11-20

WaTu 10 uneartn tne dmDuSneO zoe. again
the fire was repeated with the muzzles Of
their rifles within q few feet ofour faces.
gazed round for an instant, after discharging
my piece at one fellow. and with my bayo.
net transhxing another to the soft sandy
rock, against which he fell, and perceived
none ofmy party at my side. But the thick
smoke and rapidly falling darkness that now
ruled, in conjunction with yells, shots
and groans, the surrounding glen, made
all invisible beyond the length Of the
glen.
At that instant felt sudden pang; a
dizziness, blackness, like death, came over
me; Tclutched wildly at the sulphurous air,
relied and fell.
When recovered my senses, discover
ed that was lying on my side, bleeding
slightly from flesh wound in the thigh.
had bled profusely before recovering, for
was saturated in half CONCEALED gore. Rails
ing myself on my elbow, looked round for
my comrades. The moon was shining with
all the softness of her beauty on the spot.
counted FIVE bodies lying within compass
Of almost as many yards. endeavored to
discover their uniforms, but could not at that
distance. I rose slowly, and with much
difficulty reached the nearest. He was dead
with blue hole in the centre ofhis forehead
through which the bullet had passed, and
the blood still slowly oozed. crawled to
the next one; he too was past all earthly
aid. So on to the third, fourth and fifth
The bullet had done its work or all. These
had been, few hours before, my comrades,
eager to deal destruction upon foes, and
careless of the fate that met them. was
the sixth and last Of the party.
But where was the enemy, or what had
been tie enemy? heard no sound, and
the moonlight falling diraotly upon the dead
men, and gray, weird-like rocks. produced
an effect that was sickenins aad horrible
remembered the man | had slain.
searched for the body, but it was gone.
searched for others of the enemy, but all
had disappeared. There was no dead left
on the battle ground but the five fallen
scouts. Yet, t,at others had pcrished there
was obvious from the blo,d lying in little
pools among the rocks, behind which the
ambushed foe had lurked and poured upon
us his deadly fire.
Ny wound began to bleed afresh, which
brought faintness upon me, and sank to
the earth. A blrning thirst was consuming
me, and groaned in agony.
After little while made another effort
to rise, but failed and then falling back
as calmly as possible, / yielded to my fate.
l thought of past'days, when, in earlier youth
no cry of blood had yet awakened that inher-
ent ferocity that turks unseen in the heart
of man, until the fearful scent rouses it as it
does the bloodhounds, and It springs forth
with a swiftness that appals and strength
that desolates.
CAPTURE.
| My reverie was broken by the sound of
voices. Then came that Of approaching
footsteps. As it drew nearer new life
seemed to quivcr through my veins, like the
fresh gush Of virgin spring. The mos
savage foe, to whom the torture Of captive
were an unapproachable delight, advancing
upon me with the menaces of a demoniac,
would at that moment have been welcome
as an angel light in comparison to the lon
liness-the utter woe of that dismal glen,
and its bloody and unburied dead.
In few moments dozen armed men
were on the spot, leaning Oh their rifles and
gazing round upon the dead. Some stoop-
ed and examined the bodies with careless
scrutiny; others merely stirred them with
the foot, or turned them over with the muz-
zles of their guns, with the brutal indiffer.
ence bloodshed engenders In the heart
They're dead. Let them rot" said
one who appeared to be the leader. of the
party.
"Not all dead" replied.
Had voice actually issued from the tomb
as mine undoubtedly seemed to do, its effect
would not have been much more startling.
Each man; for an instant, seemed changed
into statue Then the whole group made
a simultaneous movement toward me.
That's the fellow that bayoneted Ike" !"
exclaimed one Of them, cooking his revol.
yer and thrusting the muuzzle between my
teeth.
In another instant should have been in
eternity but for the sudden jerking back Of
my would be destroyer's arm by one Of his
comrades who calmly said: "If he's got
through the rough work he had awhile ago.
we'll not kill the poor devil now" With q
muttered curse the rufiian replaced his wcap.
on in his belt apd withdrew. "Where are
you hurts" inquired he whose interference
had just saved me; ''can yon get upf'
told him had been shet in the hip, andwas
dying Of thirst. Here he called member
Of the party to him, and taking from his
hand q canteen, poured some Of its contents
brandy and water-down my throat. NY
wound had entirely stopped bleeding, bu,
my whole side was stiff and painful. With
much difficulty rose to my feet, and by
the aid Of two Of nay captors, for such they
were, managed to move along with the rest
of the bend. through new path to that
had hitherto travcrsed in the company o
those who had fallen. and whom / MAS now