The Louisiana Democrat. [volume] (Alexandria, La.) 1845-1918, 1872-06-26


way you can," and rode off immediate
~. / was short distance from m,
house, where my laborers were a
WORK, and on coming to the house
saw these two men going off TOWARD
the woods. Soon after getting to the
mouse one of these men, who proved t.
be Harold, returned to my yard.
and my son said to him we should moi
De surprised if these forces were in
pursuit of him and his friend. He
sa'd' "Oh no, we have done nothing to
make them pursue us; but that he had
heard that some Federal soldiers tina,
were stopping the night before at q
place called The Trap, between here
and Bowling Green, had had their
horses stolen, and he expected these
forces were sent down from Fredericks
burg to e n vor to capture the
thieves" Soon after this the Federal
forces passed the road by my house
ana went on toward the place at which
the horses were said to have been
stolen. After the forces passed Harold
went to the woods and brought his
TREND back to the house. They took
supper with my family, and after sup
per, being unwell, went directly to
my room, and my sons and these two
then went to my front porch. My
son said they seemed to be very uneasy,
and that they said they were anxious
to get a conveyance to Orange Court
House, at which place they heard
there were good many Marylanders,
who were endeavoring to get west of
the Mississippi River, and that they
wished to go with them. They asked
my son if he knew of any conveyance
they could get that evening to 90 a
part of the way. He told them there
was a colored man living near by who
had horse and carreall that he hired
out at times. They endeavored to get
it, but the man was from home. They
then offered my son $40 to carry them
twenty miles on the way. He told
them he could not go that night, but
that if they wished to go next morning
he could take them. They proposed
sleeping in my house that night, but
my son objected, as he thought from
their excited manner there was some
thing wrong about them. They then
proposed sleeping under my front
porch; but he told them we had dogs,
and they might be annoyed by them.
They then asked him if he had not an
out house in which they could sleep.
He told them there was fodder and
hay in the tobacco house, and they
could go in there if they liked.
They went in there, and after they
did so my two sons, having heard
Harold say, "We should like to get
the horse we saw you riding this
evening"" and fearing they might get
up in the night and take their horses
and go of, my sons concluded to take
their blankets and go into corn house,
between the tobacco-honse and stable,
and guard the horses; and my young
est son, fearing, as these men were
heavily armed, that if they attempted
to take the horses they might have
great difficulty and might probably
get shot, concluded he would take the
key to the house and lock the door
outside, SO as to prevent them coming
out if they wished it. This is the
reason why the door was found locked
when the officers went to the house.
About 2 o'clock A. NJ. was awakened
by the violent barking of my dogs. I
arose from my bed and went to the
window, and I found the house sur
rounded by armed forces. I drew on
my pantaloons and, without waiting to
put on any other dressing, I opened
the door to my end porch, and when
did so three men rushed in, and one of
them put pistol to my head and said
to me, care there not two men in your
house - said, enc; that there were
two men here last evening; that thev
went to the woods when you were
passing and afterward returned and
got their supper, and did not know
at that time where they were. Ihad
gone from my supper to my sleeping
room, and did not know where they
had slept"
The officer said / was not telling
them the truth and called for rope
and said they would hang me. Being
thus rudely treated no doubt ap-
peared scared and affrighted. About
this time, my son, John NJ, came to
the door and said to the officers that
these men were in the tobacco house,
and they put me under guard and
carried my son with them to the to-
bacco- house, had the door opened and
made him go in and try to bring the
men out. When he went in lie ad-
dressed Booth as Mr.. Boyd, as the
officers said, and told him there was a
large force surrounding the house and
he had better surrender. He ordered