Nebraska advertiser., 1864-04-07

aim al the tallest of the groar, tired the
piece with his usual success. The rebel
threw up his hands and fell into the wa
ter.
"That'll 90 for the present" sOlilo.
quized the riheman, as be again turned
to his paddle. Volley after yolley was
now ired upon him unul he was out Of
range. Then, upon looking back, be
could sde the enemy leaning upon their
pieces and shaking their fists at him with
menacing GESTURES. The next moment,
however, he beheld large boat, manned
by dozen Of the rebels, shoot out from
cove and move toward him. The &C.
cupants we're provided with oars. anl the
powerful exerlions they made evinced
their determination to overtake the fugi-
tive. The greenjacket rose upright, and
hastily scanning the distance between
himself and the shore, on the one hand,
and that of his pursuers on the other,
perceived that the latter would succeed
in reaching him long before he could ar
rive at the point of his destination.
In this critical position. Tom decided
to rally upon his rife. He loaded the
weapon, took deliberate aim at the ad :
vanclng boat, and fired. A loud yell of
!.
pain and the suspension Of couple Of
The oars announced the effect of his shot.
Nevertheless, the remainder of the crew
continued their exertioAs and the boa t.kept
on It's course, rapidly shortening the dis
tance between 1t and the skiff of the
sharpshooter. But the latter quickly re-
loaded his rife. and again pointed the
death-dealIng tube upon his pursuers.-
The sharp report of his piece rang upon
the morning ali, and was followed by a
second cry of agony from the advancing
boat, while another pair of oars hung
usel SIS over her side. The compact po-
sitiop of The enemy afforded Tom an Op-
porlunity of picking off, more than one
Of his enemies at every shot; and, as the
crew had not brought their muskets with
them, they we're unable to avenee the
loss of their companions. But the yells
and execralions, which now broke from
their lips warned the daring rifeman Of
the fate in store for him should he fall
into the hands of the enraged gray
backs"
Fally realizing the danger of his Po-
sition, though not in the least unnerved
by it, he continued to load and FIRE with
rapidny and at the same time with the
steady GOODNESS which always character
ized his movements. Every shot told
with fearful effect, and by this time the
craft was within hundred yards of that
occupied by the SharpshOoter. there were
but five men remaining, and those had
thrown themselves into the bottom of the
boat, hoping thus to escape the unerring
contents of the long life which was again
bearing upon them. But as the sharp
oniinous crack of the piece rattled upon
the air, one of them threw up his hands
and rolled over on his back. Four men
were now all who remained In the boat
capable of performing duty, and it was
evident that they were panic stricken by
the fearful effect of the riaeman'S fire,
for although they grasped the handles of
their oars they did not pull stroke. In
the meantime Tom proceeded to reload,
and the next moment had raised his piece
for aaolher shot, when one of the men
waved white handkerchief about his
head and shouted.
stop your firing, for Gods sake, and
leave some of US to carry our dead and
wounded to the shore"
"Certainlyr' replied Tom, as he re-
placed his rifle in The bottom of the skif,
~Good-by 70
The rebels now turned their boats
head towards the shore they had left, and
pulled rapidly away, while the sharp
shooter resumed his paddle, directing the
little craft toward the Federal side of
the river, where he arrived without fur
theI opposition, and related his adventure
TO his comrades.
A few days afterward the news of the
evacuation of Yorktown spread like
wildfire through the army, and Tom B.
was no longer at loss to understand the
meaning of the noises he heard while
floating under the guns of the rebel for.
tiheatiOns. The preparations for depar-
ture had been commenced even then, but
were ingeniously concealed from The OBJ
serva,ions of the Federal aronauts.
It is said that some of the vermin in
the camps at the South thrive so wonder
fully and have grown so large that the
letters 81. F. W." are plainly to be seen
on their backs, like the creases IN the
shell of an old-fashioned mud turtle
The soldiers say il means in for the
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