The daily dispatch. [volume] (Richmond [Va.]) 1850-1884, 1864-01-06

JAN ~ Al ! q. loO4s
iaehse Of eensas, aaA aias thieknessss Of hsiek
psaeea e1sewise, they bepn e wondes when hey
bhosld rsach the soh sasih. Suddenly . bsick fell
chasbes had they rsachsAl Il was inmsdiassiy
Il proved 70 6e an ar ekanbsr esten1ins he wkois
ieagth Of the row Of cells. Here wss IN unex-
had been obliged 20 conceal their rubbish In thsif
bed tieks, each day buraiag pFoposionate quansI-
y o. straw; now they had room eneash for Ill
they coald dig. They at once comn,enced 10 tan
mel 1t hight angles with this cir chamber, 70 get
through the foundation; and day after day they
bored, day aer day the blocks Of granite were re-
moved, and stili the work before them seemed In
tern Asble.
Aftsr twenty-,hrss days OF unremit,ins labor,
and getting through granite wall Of SIX feet In
thickness, they reached the soil. They tunnelied
up for come distance. and light besxn to shine.-
hl6llment Of their labon, a1d II Providence
would only continue IL favor, they would soon BE-
ftee. This was the morning OF the 96th day Of
November, 1858. The next night, At IL O'Clock,
was determined on a. the hour at which they
would attempt their liberty. Zach moment that
inteTvened was filled with dreadful anxiety and
easpenee, and each dime the guard entered In
s ssS ae.r go Ins Genera
dawned bright and beautiful The evening came,
and clouds began to gather. How they prayed for
them TO increase. II rain should only begin their
Wss would Be great.
minds, the keeper entered with q letter for Gen
Morgan. He opened It, and what was his surprise,
and may say wonder, to find It from poor Irish
menclne, "My dear Ginral, | feel certain You are
going to try 20 gis out Of prison, but for your
sake DON'T you Try it, my dear Ginral. You
viii only be taken prisoner agin, aud made to
then went on u speak of bic Kindness to
the poor when he lived at Lexington, and con-
cIaded oy again exhorting him 70 trust in God
and walt III: time. What could this mean!-
No human being on the outside had been Informed
OF his Intention to escape, and yet, Just a. all
things were ready for him to make the attempt
here comes letter from Winchester, Kentucky
passed through the examining ONCE Of General
Mason, and then through the hands Of the lower
o6icials. What If II should excite their suspicion
and cause them to exelcise an increased v9llancel
fate could not be much worse, and they resolved
to go. Netting now remained to be done but for
the General and Colonel Dick Morgan TO change
cells The hour approached for them to be locked
Others cell door with his back exposed, and pre-
tended to be engaged in making UP their beds. Az
the turnkey entered they "turned inn and pulled
their doors shut. Six, eight, ten O'Clock came
the approach Of twelve! II came-,he sentinel
passed his rOund-all well. After waiting few
moments, to see II he intended to slip back, the
signal was given-alI Quietly slipped down into the
air chamber, first etufhng their flannel shirts and
placing them In bed az they were accustomed to
lie. As they moved quietly along through the
dark recess to the terminus where they were to
emerge from the earth, the General prepared to
light match As the lurid glare fell upon their
cOuntenances a scene prrsenssd which can
never be forgotten. There were crouched scvo,.
brave men, who had resolved to be free. They
were armed with bowie-knives made out Of case
knives. Life, in their condition, was scarcely to
be desired, and the moment for the desperate
chance had arrived. Suppose, as they emerged
from the ground that tho dog should give the alarm
they could but die.
But few moments were spent in this kind of ap-
prehensi0n. The hour had arrived, and yet they
came. Fortunately-ycs, providentially, the night
had suddenly grown dalk and rainy; the dogs had
retired to their kennels, and the seutineIs had taken
refuge under shelter. The inner wall, by the aid
of the rope ladder, was soon scaled, and now the
outer one had to be attempted. Capt Taylor, (who,
by the way, fs nephew of old Zack,) being a
very active man, by the assistance OF his comrades
reached the top of the gate, and enabled get
the rope over the wall When the top was gained
they found rope extending all around, which the
General Immediately cut, as he suspected that II
might lead into the warden's room. This turned
out to be correct They then entered the sentry
box on the wall and changed their clothes, and let
themselves down the wall. In sliding down the
General skinned his hand very badly, and all were
more or less bruised. Once down, they separated
Taylor and Shelton going one way, Hokersmith.
Bennett, and McGee another, and Gen. M. aud
Capt: Hines % proceeding iYmediateIy towards the
In gold, succeeded In Obtaining paper which
inf,rmed him Of the schedule time OF The different
roads. The clock struck one, and he knew by hur-
Tying he could reach the down train for Cincinnati.
He got there just a. the train was moving on He At
once looked on to see II there vera any soldiers on
board, and espying q Federal officer, he boldly
walked up and took seat beside him. He remarked
to him that, Gas the night damp and chilly, per-
han 11n VlyOlp fnln IN 81 elo Aan
and the party soon became very agreeable TO each
other. The cars in crossing the Scioto have to
pass within a short distance Of the Penitentiary.
As they passed, the officer remarked: "There's
the hotel at which Morgan and his officers are
spending their leisure" eyes" replied the Gen
eraI, eand sincerely hope he will make up his
mind to board there during the balance Of the war,
for he 10 great nuisance" When the train reached
ZeniA II was detained by some accident more than
an hour. Imagine his anxiety, ~ soldier af-
ter soldier would pass through the train, for
feas that when the sentinel passed his round al two
O'Clock their absence might be discovered. The
train was due In Cincinnati At six O'clock This
was the hour at which they were turned out OF
their cells and Of course their escape would be then
discovered. In few moments after Il would be
known all over the country. The train, having
TO make up. the time. 1t was already past elk
O'Clock. The General said to Captain Hines: SIT
is after six /; II we 20 to the depot we are dead
went, and fell heels over head in. the mud. An
other severe turn Of the brake, and the General
jumped. He was more successful, and lighted on
his feet. There were some soldiers near, who re-
marked: "What in the hi do you mean by jump
ing off the cars heref' The General replied
"What In the ID is the use Of my going into town
when live here; aud, besides, what business Is II
Of yours:
They went Immediately to the river. They
found skid, but no oars. Soon little boy came
over, and appeared to be waiting "What are You
waiting for?" said the General. sT am waiLna
for my losdl" "What 10 the price of q load ''-
'sTw0 d0llars." "Well, - we are tired and hun
gry we will give you the two dollars, and you can
put us over" So, over he took them. 9AWheFs
does Miss -- live !" "Just q short distance
from here" "Wiil you show me her house !''
eYss, sir" The house was reached; q nne break
fast was soon obtained, money and horse fur.
nished, good woman's prayer bestowed, and od
he went. From there forward through Kentucky
everybody Wed with each other ~ TO yho should
show him the most attention, even to the negroes;
and young ladies Of refinement begged the h0noi
to cook his meals. tie remained in Kentucky
some days, feeling perfectly safs, and sending Into
T ilo thtn~a he vv1mtAA. Went