The weekly pioneer and Democrat. [volume] (Saint Paul, Minn. Territory) 1855-1865, 1865-01-13
A YANKEE RAID In ALABAMA.
A Rich Rebel Account of Rebel
a" Valor. 90
THE lMM OKTAL ssPUNIPKIN
STUDSo ,iOF TANGIPAHO
AND { OSYKA.
Correspondence of the Mobile Advertiser.

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Correspondence of the Mobile Advertiser. +.
Tangipaho, Alabama at first felt fierce
and defiant, under the protection of the
chivalric " pumpkin Studs " encamped at
that place. (Pompkin Studs is the ver-
nacular for militia and reserves in this
country.) The few that had guns were
sent out on picket duty /; those that hadn't
remained to keep up the courage of the
town. Passing by several minor alarms,
I come to the big scene of Wednesday,
midnight. The picket guard on one of
the roads fred their guns at some harm
less, If not imaginary thing in the dark,
and gallopped into the town with the re-
port that the Federals were right behind
them. If q mine had exploded beneath
the town, the scatterment couldn't have
been 'greater. In about thirty.fve sec
onds there was not a Pumpkin Stud in the
town, and very few others. q must ex-
cept few officers, who remained behind
in frantic endeavors to rally the flying
studs.) One manjumped from q second
story gallery, and knocked away a post
from under said gallery in the violence of
bis start for the swamp. A recruiting Of
ficer stopping in the town undertook to
bride q buggy, which, in the darkness, he
mistook for his horse; finding the animal
at last, and jumping for the saddle he went
clean over. A young doctor, just on the
eve of getting married, ran out of one of
his boots, and next day, in company with
his intended, went up the road wearing
one torn boot and an embroidered clipper.
A captain en- route to Mobile took to the
swamp and remained tillmorning. Wad-
Ing up a branch, the better to elude pur-
sui, he heard q report of firearms, and
soon after that he was frightened. by an
affighted soldier, who jumped into q
branch just ahead of him. 81 surrender, I"
shouted the captain, taking the fellow for
Yankee. eyes, surrender, (" said the
soldier, not hearing the captains personal
pronoun, and mistaking him for an officer
in pursuit, he himself being an escaped
deserter from the guard-house, with 9TH
ers, and the cause Of the firing that had
been heard. Having mutually surrendered,
they looked very foolish at each other for
moment or 90, wheh the deserter started
to run. The captain, still believing that
the Yankees were near, started in pursuit,
shouting ""Dont run so fast, Ill keep
you company" But the deserter soon
vanished, and the captain stole into town,
much disgusted with the state of affairs
generally. es~rr -,a..ts -e ..,- :.
At Osyka the state of affairs was pretty
much the same, if not little worse, as
there they have a telegraph Office to add
to the general confusion that may arise.
This telegraph Office was the centre of ex-
element, and the radiating point of the
several stampedes that occurred. The
hveliest Settlement was late on Friday
night. In the back room of the telegraph
Office, assembled around the fire, and dis
cussins the situation, were the operator,
the post commander, and number of the
honorable and respectable members of the
"Osyka News Club" The particular
subject under discussion was the general
nervousness of the community, and the
ease with which panic might be started
at that late hour. Indeed, Lieut., B
had suggested what good idea it would
be for some one to gallop his horse through
the town, and fire shot or two as he
rode, in order to see the natives get up and
skedaddle, when clatteriDg OF horses feet
was heard, and DR.. NJ who had been
keeping watch outside, rushed in, pop
eyed, and said, in low voice, "Get out
quick the Yanks are at the door" If
that party had been discharged out of a
mortar, their evanishment could not have
been more sudden and complete. They
bolted out at the back door like a drove
of mad buffaloes, and went charging
through and over the back fences for the
woods. They had some six or eight high
board and paliDg fences to get over, and the
way they did it was caution to tom-cats.
1t Is stated as fact that in their flight
they scared one calf to death, and another
out of o year 8 growth. The dead calf was
the property of Mr. Michael Hart, a WELL
known and respected citizen of Osyka.
and the stunted calf belongs to Mr..
Adds, the Postmaster, to either of which
gentlemen any one who doubts this
statement can refer. Lacerated hands
and bruised knees and hips of the stam.
penders, when they reached the friendly
shades of the swamps, vouched for the
magni6cence Of their hegira over the
fences. The Lieutenant who had suggest
ed the plan for soaring the town didnt
consider the swamp safe and was for swim
ming the Tangipaho river in addition.
Captain w. after getting breath, set about
lighting his pipe. "Don't, said enc whose
nerves still vibrated, ''theyll see the Koht
and be after rs. I" "But I'll light the match
in may hat, behind a tree" said the Osp-
tain. 'Oh, no, don't was the added re-