The Baltimore County union. [volume] (Towsontown, Md.) 1865-1909, 1866-02-03
A New Way of Paying Old Debts

During the battle of Tishomingo creek
a young gentleman of this city, now enga-
ged in the study of law, was captured and
brought to this city, and shipped, together
with a number of others, to Alton peniten-
tiary, where he was kept some six weeks, at
the end ofwhich time an order was receiv-
ed to transfer number of officers-him-
self among the number-to Johnsons Is
land and, under strong guard, they took
the train for that delightful summer retreat.
Lieutenant H had seen enough of pri-
son life during his, weeks sojourn at Alton
to satisfy him that it was not exactly suit
ed to one who had followed the "War Ea-
gle" through all his campaigns, and deter
mined, if possible, to effect his escape
But it seems that several others were pos
sessed of the same idea, and it was soon
known that several had taken leave without
the countersign, by jumping from the train,
which increased the vigilance of the guard,
and rendered an attempt doubly dangerous,
but the lieutenant determined that the pris-
on gates should never close on him again.
About two o'clock in the morning he no.
ticed that the guard had fallen asleep, and,
softly raising the window, he peered out in
to the darkness, and discovered that the
train was rushing on with frightful speed,
enough to have deferred any other than he
from making the attempted, but Alton was
behind and Johnson's Island ahead, and,
committing himself to the Fates, he slipped
through the window, and, loosing his hold,
dropped to the ground. For moment he
was stunned and bewildered, and unable to
rise, but luckily no bones were broken, and
on rising he discovered that he was inthe
midst of large prairie, while far away the
train was numbering on.
Pursuing the line of the railway, he, a.
bout daylight, came within sight of vii
lage, which afterwards proved to be Clin-
ton What to do he did not know, with
out cent, and dressed in full uniform, and
weary and hungry. The first thing to be
done was to get rid of his grey jacket, which
was taken off and buried in an adjacent corn
field, and, resolving to put bold face on
the matter he set out for the town, and, on
reaching the suburbs, he discovered some
workmen engaged in building a brick ho use,
and, walking up to one who seemedfto be
in authority, he asked him he wanted
| workmen, to which he received a ready re-
ply in the affirmative, coupled with the re-
mark that he was Colonel Of the One hun
dred and fifty fourth Illinois, and his fur
| Tough had nearly expired. and immediate
| " offered him two dollars day to "wait
| ON the brick masons. This was a great
trial to the adventurous "Reb," but he i'm
mediately set to work with will, and thus
things passed along very smoothly until he
sat down at the dinner table on the third
day, when the colonel startled him by re-
marking to the family that several Rebels
had escaped from the train~and one had
been tracked to Clinton, looking the lieu
tenant full in the face at the same time,
but he kept his couutenance, and returned
to his work, i'll at ease. sl
About A o'clock, the Colonel made some
excuse for going into the town, but scarcely
had he left when an Irish servant girl beck
oned to him to come into the kitchen
which he did, and learned from her that the
Colonel had gone after guard to arrest
him. She begged him to fly, at the same
time handing him two dollars in silver
lie was not long in taking her advice, and
ere night closed in, was miles away in the
boundless prairie. fstoe ESQ W
We will not follow him in all his adven
turers to Chicago, where he found friend
and means, and thence to Detroit, Montrea
and Halifax, where he embarked on block
ade runner, and on his fearful voyage alon!
Hatteras, the passage Of the blockadin!
fleet, his safe arrival at WILMINGTON, frou
which point he Immediately proceeded t
join his command then in North Mississir
pi. Suffice it to say that he did so, an
fought through the remainder of the wa
and then was paroled, and now walks, tn
streets with an air decidedly more lega
! than warlike.
A few days since he entered store wher
quite a number of gentlemen were collec
ed, when one ofthem suddenly accosted hi
with "Hallo, amt you the reb hired t
carry the hod y Eyes, l am, responded tn
limb of the law, ''and Iwant the seven do
lars you owe me for it, Amidst roars
laughter Colonel S. produced his poke
book and handed over. the amount, stain
that he had never experienced more plea:
ure in liquidating "a debt in his life.
We venture the prediction that this
the first debt of the kind collected sine
the closing of the Memphis Apped
A LITTLE Roy not yet three years old sal
with much earnestness ~ wish Icould sc