The daily Gate City. [volume] (Keokuk, Iowa) 1855-1916, 1864-12-09
Occasional Correspondents OF the Cafe Cityl
FROM WASHINGTON.
The Capital Brushing up.-Escape OF
loWn Officers from Rebel Capfav.
fly..Personatttte
WAsHINGToN, Dec. 8, 1864.

WAsHINGToS, Dec. 8, 1864.
For some tine now intelligent contra
bands, both of the male and female per-
suason, have been engaged in brushing
up this metropolis all around. prepare.
tory to the meeting Of Congress. One
would meet with them everywhere-
scrubbing the stairways of the magnificert {
Treasury, built, you know, of granite;
sweeping cobwebs from the corners of the
rooms and corridors in the Patent Office;
cleaning, or attempting to clean Pennsyl-
wanna Avenue; dustipg the Capitol; and
90 on, and SO on; 30 that things may now
be said to be in apple-pie order from Gel.
lar to attic. and altogether worthy of the
amisble and talented gentlemen who will
so soon be the chief political attraction OF
the nation. am very glad they are go
ing 10 be here SO soon, for, after all,
Washington City without Congress is
very mucn like the play of Hamlet, with
Hamlet left out. Meantime, however,
let me tell of the escape of Captains
Skelton and Deal, of The l7,h Iowa Vol
untesrs, from rebel captivity. Accounts
thereof, less or more particular, have ap.
peared in some of the New York dailies,
but guess your readers mag fnd some
thing of interest in the following:
The gallant 18th Iowa, numbering not
far from three hundred, were attacked,
you will remember, by Gen. S,ewart's
corps of Hoods army. at Tilton, Geor-
gia, some forty odd miles from Chatta-
nooga, on the l3sh of October last. They
made heroic defense against tremendous
odds, fighting for several hours more
splendidly than aoy men Achilles ever
saw ever fought, but were at last com.
PEELED to surrender. They we're march.
ed to Tailadega, Ala, distance of abou,
$50 miles. For three days they had
nothing to eat except what they happen
ed to have in their hayegsacks At tht
end Of that time they were turned into ,
pasture. and lot of rebel soldiers wen
to corn6eld hard BY, husked> > lot o.
corn, and threw it over the fence to ou
brave boys as though they had been ,
drove of swine That is the trsstmen
the chivslry gave the officers aud men o
the 17th Iowa Infantry.
From Talladega. they went to Selm
by rail, and thence BY steamer down Il
Cahswbs, where they remained three o
four days. the privates in prison, ana th
officers having the freedom, on parole, Q
certain parts of the town. They left Ca
hawba on the evening OF the 30th Ocio
Der, going up the Alabama river. her
flowing iu general westward course, t
Montgomery, where they again took car
for Columbus, Georgia. and reached ths
city about dark en- the evening Of Octobe
8lst. Capt. skelion, and Capt. Georg
w. Deal. of Jasper county, having previ
ously determined to a,temp, an escape
here put their plans in execution. Re
ceiviug permission to go and get fue
they took advantage Of it to escape, ans
eluding the guard. skedaddled on th
double-quick toward Atlanta. Present.
they struck eastward, then went so1ii
ward awhile, and then took . westerl
direction, striking the Chattahooch,
some three or four miles from CoIumbu
Here they changed their course sousl
ward, following the river for three day
till their "hog aad homiuy 'vas exhaaa
.ss si