The Buchanan County guardian. (Independence, Buchanan County, Iowa) 1858-1864, 1863-03-31

believe dat YOU can make your way
through There will be nobody TO
trouble YOU but few guerrlas, perhaps.
and cotton burners, and they are such
sneakin' towards lhat they Won't show
fight unless they are five hundred strong.
Last week whole gang of them came
10 burn few bales OF cotton that | had
stored up for the use OF my fanny, |
was alone with my wife and children,
but when | saw the hounds coming
hauled kCwn the old rife, and standing
in the door, told them that the first one
who went to enter the yard was a dead
man. They began to look as though
they had woke up the wrong passenger,
but they swore awful vengeance, and
declared that they would come back
with a bigger force and burn my house
to the ground. l told them that they
would find me at home any time, and
then the rascals turned and rode down
to poor widows about two miles below
where live, and burned the only cotton
bale she had. No danger of them, as
long as you keep stiff upper lip and
show them the muzzle of a revolver"
After short consultation we concluded
to follow our friend. Throwing down
the fence, he led thesewy through eslm
ton field, the crop of which was still
ungathered, A few negroes were in the
center of the patch, evidently picking
the staple on their own account. Our
guide soon brought us out of the cotton
wilderness to well travelled highway,
which he declared would take us straight
to Memphis. Keep right on the main
road" was his parting advice; be cool,
and never surrenaer," With many thanks
to the man who had proved himself
friend to us in our emergency, we start
ed out.
Everywhere the country appeared 81
lent and deserted. No one was at work
in The field The fences were torn down
or burned. Houses dsmaniled, and all
around were evidences of the misery,
poverty and desliution to which the
country had been reduced. We had
now entered Tennessee, and were travel
ing through a portion Of the State which
a few short years ago raised more cotton,
and was peopled with more wealthy
and arisIocratlc proprietors, than any 9th
er portion Of the Union. Eut cred bat
tie had here stamped his foot" Where
once was opulence, brcoded poverty, and
nature herself sinned in despair at wit
Messing the ruin which WAS spread over
the land Now and then a few women
would appear at the windows and glance
toward us with furlive looks, until salts.
fed that we Were confederate when
presto, what change. Frowns gave
way to smiles. The most expressive
words in the English vocabulary were
selected as gentle explosives by which to
assure us OF their love A thousand
questions would be asked in reference TO
the Holly Springs affair How the Yam
KEGS fought. and whether we had bro't
them any relics or not One of the par
ty pulled Chicago Tribune from his
pocket, and handing it over with a gra,
cous smile, informed them that he had
abstracted it from deiunct mudsill's
knapsack. AS general thing The wom-
Ell were far more fierce and vndictive in
/ their hale towards the Yankees than the
men. They delighted in insulting the
northern soldier with the most approbri,
Gus epthcts, and they do not hesitate to
give them a shot whenever an opportun,
ity occurs. | know that many soldiers
will testify to the ruthfullness of this,
for at the Springs they came and fired
upon our retreating men with revolvers.
Every womanly feeling appears TO be
crushed out of their nature entirely, and
and as Prentice very appropriately says !:
They can be considered AS nothing else
but she-devils" 1t was now nearly
night, and we were beginning TO discuss
the proprie,y Of taking up quarters at
some planters house. when we spied in
the road ahead Of us a nondescript rep
resenlalive of the Israelitish race, who
was suaigh;way pronounced by my COM
/ panions TO be the wandering Jew. Thick
masses of long, black hair fell down over
his shoulders, while his hawk like nose
was drawn down 10 the ground with an
aspect OF the deepest detection. Ga rid
/ ing up we found that lie had lost much
moniSh at Holly SPRING, while all Of his
cotton had been burned He too, like
hundreds of others, yielding to the man
ia lor speculation, had come and saw, but
got gobbled up and sent adrift on the