Delaware gazette. [volume] (Delaware, Ohio) 1855-1886, 1866-11-02
a Thrilling Adventure.

In the late great and bloody war, it
! would have been hard to find a more
brave and daring soldier than the
young and dauntless Harry KiIOs.
I When the President first called for
troops to defend the Union, he enlis-
IN a Michigan regiment, and the year
1862 found him serving his country in
! the capacity of q spy. Many were the
bold and daring acts which he per
formed, until his name became a ter
rOr to those rebels in that part of the
held IN which he served. But one
bright day when he was making raid
into the country far south of the IN
/ ion lines, he accidentally found him
self In the hands of small band Of
ruthless guerrillas.
The guerrillas had camped by a
small stream In little old but strong
I ly built hut; and our SPY was confined
in a small, dark, tight closet, and al
! lowed the freedom of his limbs. Har-
~ Kilos, rejecting upon his situation,
/ knew that a reward had been offered
for himself by a guerrilla colonel, and
! that was the only reason he had not
/ been instantly bUtchered He knew,
/ too, that a worse fate was In store for
him than simple shooting through the
head, and he resolved to make every
effort for escape that lay In his power.
Examination proved to him that the
walls Of his cell were strong and tight
and so that no egress could be made
through them Then he examined
floor.
It was of solid plank, fastened to
the sIeepers by spikes and wooden pins.
Ha y suddenly exclaimed Harry,
IN low tone, as he came upon one
short plank which was loose. In
moment he had raised it, and with a
silent cOngratulatlOn, he proceeded to
make his exit down through the floor.
The floor of the house was about a
foot from the ground and as our young
adventurer replaced the plank, he felt
his spirits rise within him. The
house was full of the guerrillas, and
he could hear them carousing over bis
head
A few were keeping guard outside
but Harry felt sure he could slip by
these as soon as it should come dark.
darkness was not far off and the only
danger he apprehended- was that the
guerrIllas would look into his vacant
cell. Satisfaction, however, settled up |
on his mind as he saw the shadows of |
night gathering and thickening and /
as the carOUsing over head began to |
lose its loud and boisterous tone, he /
crept slowly out from under the house, /
and pushed through the thick bushes |
until he reached the edge of the river /
over which he would be obliged to /
swim.
At that moment loud cry, uttered /
by the Ruerillas, reached his ear, and |
he knew that his absence had been dis
covered. He heard the tramp Of many
feet, and yells, curses, and oaths reach
ed his ears.
They were on his track, and delay
was death
Acting upon this thought, he plum
ged silently into the river, and swan
for the opposite shore with firm and
rapid strokes.
The guerrillas heard his movements,
and he saw, to his horror, that four
armed villains had started In persuit |
in small boat; while the report of a
revolver broke upon the air, and the /
splash of ball spattered the water in
to his face. Knowing that he could .
not reach the opposite shore ahead of
his persuers, he slackened his pace,
aud In a moment the boat was not ten
feet off.
Surrender, you id Yank r. yell
led the fellow who stood in the bow
of the little boat
Our spy dove deep and came up
nearly under the stern of the craft,
and exerting all his strength, directed
with such skill as was only his, he
capsized the boat, and then, with a
loud laugh he struck out for shore.
He was a strong swimmer, but one
Of the largest of the gueTrillas gained
on him in spite Of all he could do.
He dreaded the embrace with the
muscular rufian, but it was inevitable
the huge fellow was already upon
him, and it was fight or die
The two men grappled, and the wa
ter foamed around them.
Harry had never met his match In
physical strength, and the burly guer-
rilla was as child in his hands.
He soon held him firm In a position
which rendered him helpless, and
seizing the rufian's throat, be choked
him till he was insensible, and then let
him sink to the bottom of the river
1t was necessary to do this act in or
der to save his own life; and now that
he hadIgOt rid of his worst antagonist,
he reached the northern shore and
waving his hat, he uttered yell Of tri-
umph, and disappeared in the darkness
leaving his enemy to curse and swear
with chagTin and malice.