The weekly Ottumwa courier. [volume] (Ottumwa, Iowa) 1857-1872, 1865-01-05

A,pTHURSDAYJ ia
THRILLING NARRATlvE. }
ssq From the, the Iowa State Resister,l
'1 Capt. GeorgniW Dssi.elof Company g
tSeventssnth Iowa Infsntrv, whose rasidenc
is near Vandalia, JASPER county, arrived 4,
thk city yesterday. having recently effeces,
his sseaps from Rebsl impnsonfnent. A
ctr request hs narrated ahe leading sfsct,
sannected with his sdVsntures, which pos
Isess mare thah, the interest Of rom Anse, ans
which are susstan tally as follows: :, Il as
The Sevsnteenth Regiment was captared
tat Tihon, Geersiay ianOutobsr iSst lbyr gen
SsewArt's corps Of I1ood'ssrmy! The:sKsc
ftive force Of the regiment was only TWO hu6d
Idfed ana eighty 'muskets, andfthe attacking
army nuthberel abSdt ten ntiSdsands sOl
course fessstSncs could not bsrsiias sonti6.
tusd, cahd the sdrehder was s1nconaditionsi
|Thss brix4herl sers afaisGsd sndyr Js5sfa'ts
Blns MounSain,, Ala, thehce Is Tailadesa,
thence to Selma, themes down the Alabains
river to Cahaba. After a detention Of four
days at this point, 4 detachment Of Eve hun
dred prisoners, including the officers and
men OF the Seventeenth were put on board
the Q. s. transport 'Coquette,' and started
up the river, bound for eastern pris ons On
the soth of October they arrived 1t Mont
gomery, and were tr ransferred to railroad
train, bound for Columbus, Ga, which lat.
ter point they reached the next afternoon At
Z O'clock. During tho ride from Montgom-
cry to Columbus, Capt. Deal ana 1xpt.1 J. 7.
Shelton of'the same regiment, made Up their
minds to escape II possible, aud agreed uponf,
q plan Of operations. The last named officer
had been in captivity about . year before,
and had effected his escape from Libby Pri-
son after series Of bold adven tures and
hair.breadth escapes. When the train ar.
rived at Columbus. the prisoners were park
ed in a common near the Macon railroad de.
pot. Captains Deal and Shelton proposed
to the guard to have q fire kinded, and
while protesting to be gathering fuel for
that purpose, they lodged from the pres
ence Of the sentinel, and disappeared into the
darkness. Knowing they would be follow
ed as soon as missed, and that the presump-
ton would be that they would set out in the
direction of Atlanta, the proceeded north.
ward, till they struck the Chattahoochie riy-
er, thence proceeded down the river. and
finally a complete circuit of the city, travel
ing as much as possible in water so as to
throw the bloodhounds from the track. in
case that style Of pursuers should be put
upon their heels. Having thus baffled what.
ever measures might haye been taken in
camp to recapture them, thew proceeded
cautiously down the river, crawling on thei,
hands and knees il, some instances througb
tne thick ana almost Impenetraple cane.
breaks by day, and taking to the open fields
when they thought it prudent, by night
In this manner they travelled forty miles,
until they reached the plantation Of Gsbriel
Toombs, relative 1--WE think brother) Of Rob
ert Toombs. Here they !obtainsds from
body.servant of the Ex.G Georgia U. s. Sena-
tor, bstoau, for their transporta tion down
the river. The servant was suffering Sc
verely from illness, but at great personal
risk ne conducted the fugitives some three
-. a.rtH
miles along the river bank to where the boat
lay, although in accomplishing the journey
ne was compelled frequently to sit down and
rest. He obtained for them about three
days supply of bread, and asked nothing
for the boat, bread, or his own scrv ices: but
the officers insisted upon his acceptance of
asilver watch, to which he finally consent
ed. Bidding their friend adieu, they EN-.
barked in bateau, but had proceeded only a
short distance, when they ran into DIN.
ahd Captain s.. was precipitated into HE
stream, and had a narrow escape from
drowning. He finally grasped the edge Of
the boat, and with the assistance Of bis com
panion was enabled to get on shore. Re-
pairing damages as far as possible, they
started again, but had proceeded only
short distance, before their frail boat sprang
leak, and threatened them with new
danger. Captain Skelton had oh two pairs
Ct pantaloous, and Porting with one Of them,
material was thus obtained for caulking the
bateau. 'aud'aftse eAeotsxg the fepairs, the
voyagers again proceeded down stream. -
They found the country On either side Of the
river for two bundled and eighty miles one
continuous corn.nsld, and Of course passed
latshort distances planters houses and ne
gro hsts. Through this region they could
only proceed It night hauling their boat IN.
70 thecsne- breaks and eoncealipg themselves
in the day time. They obtained al Of their
supplies from the slaves, aud in no instance
whore the fugitives madc themselves known
to this servile class, did they fail to receive
the swarmert sympathy, and the most mate
rial aid in the shape Of food, information,
&c. When about one hundred miles below
Columbus, they came suddenly and unex.
peetedly in sight Of . steamboat, lying at a
piaee called E,fola p.ddl;no n,,,nL,r3.o