Elizabeth daily monitor. [volume] (Elizabeth, N.J.) 1868-1880, 1869-08-02
.SIisabstB 8aiIp @onitor,
PUBLISHED AT 155 BROAD STREET, by
j. MADISON DRAKE.
A pER1LoUs EPISODE.

luLGly DSCu thpPoluOCu oHPciAdoOhesohO
Of the life-saving apparatus on the New
Jersey coast, once passed through a
very perilons adventure. He was
among the Federal prisoners in Libby
Prison at the time when the Confed-
crate government determined to retail
ate in kind the execution of two rebel
officers by one of our Western generals
Mr.. Sawyer was at that time a captain
in the First New Jersey Cavalry, and
was of the grade of officers from whom
selections were to be made for the VIC
tins to Confederate vengeance. The
officer who was in charge of the pris-
oners at that time, was kind hearted
and agreeable man, and was regarded
by them with feelings OF gratitude and
affection. On the morning in question
this officer entered the room where the
prisoners were confined and told all the
officers to walk out into another room.
This order was obeyed with particular
alacrity, as the prisoners were daily ex-
pecting to be exchanged, and it was
supposed that the order had arrived,
and that they were about to exchange
their prison quarters for home and
freedom. After they had all gathered
in the room, their countenances lighted
up with this agreeable hope, the officer
came in among them, and with very
grave face took paper out of his pock-
ct and told them flat he had very
melancholy duty to perform, the pur-
port of which would be better under
stood by the reading of the order he
held in his hand, which he had just re-
ceived from the War Department. He
then proceeded to read to the amazed
and Mortified group, an order for the
immediate execution of two of their
number, in retaliation for the hanging
of two Confederate officers.
AS the reader ceased, the men look
ed at each other with blanched faces,
and silence like death prevailed for
some minutes in the room. The Con-
federate officer then suggested that per-
perhaps the better way would be to
place number of slips of paper, equal
to the whole number of officers from
whom the victims were to be selected,
in box, with the word "death' writ
ten on two of them, and the rest blank,
the two who drew the fatal slips to be
the doomed men. This plan was
adopted, and chaplain was appointed
to prepare the slips. The drawing
then commenced, the men advancing
and taking out slip, and if it proved
a blank, taking their places in another
part of the room. The drawing had
proceeded for some time, and fully q
third of the officers had exchanged
gloomy looks of apprehension for a re-
lieved aspect they could not avoid
showing, after escape from such terri
ole peril, before fatal death slip had
been drawn. At the end of about this
period, however, the first slip was
drawn, and the name of g Captain Hen
ry w. Sawyer, of the FIRST New Jersey
Cavalry" was called out as the unfor-
tunate man. The Captain was, of
course, deeply agitated, but did not
lose his self-possession. He immedi-
ately began revolving in his mind some
plan for averting, or at least postpon-
ing the immediate carrying out of the
sanguinary edict of the government,
and by the time that he was joined by
his companion in misfortune, who
turned ont to be a Captain Flynn, of
an Indiana regiment of infantry, he
had resolved upon his course. The
officer in command, as soon as the
drawing was completed, ordered the
two men to be taken out and immedi
ately executed.
Captain Sawyer, however demanded
as request that no civilized nation
could refuse under such circumstances,
that he should have permission to write
to his wife, to inform her of the terri
BILE fate that awaited him, and to have
her come on and bid him an eternal
farewell. Respite for day OF two was
thus obtained, and Sawyer subsequent
ly obtained an interview with the rebel
Secretary of War, and secured permits
sion to write to his wife, which he did
His object in writing to her was princi-
pally for our government to be made
acquainted with the predicament in
which the two officers were placed, and
to secure hostages and threaten retalia-
ton should the order of the rebels be
carried out. 1t turned out precisely as
Sawyer hoped and expected. Our
Government was informed of the con
dition of affairs, and promptly seized a
son of Gen. Lee and one ofsome other
prominent rebel, and threatened to
hang them if the Union officers were
executed. BY this means the lives of
the two doomed men were saved, as the
Confederate government did not dare
to carry out their threats, After a few