The Ottawa free trader. [volume] (Ottawa, Ill.) 1843-1916, 1880-12-04

posted lncTe udy anu uiSut anu ~ ouc was
allowed to enter the room in which the pota-
toes were kept, they continued to disappear at
the rate Of "a bushel day. The Confederales
saw their yams disappearing in this way, and
were furious. The thing was an unaccounta-
bic mystery. The doors and windows OF the
room were sealed, and private marks were put
on the wax, so il any one of them was opened
il would be known The next morning the
officers went into the room. The wax was all
right but another bushel Of potatoes had van.
lshcd. Well, sir, it was the maddest crowd
you ever saw. They came after me, and or
dered me to take my stand In the room. They
locked me in, and lighted candle was put al,
each end of the room SO that could see. |
was ordered to shoot on sight anybody | saw
stealing those yams. 1t was terribly lonesome
! in that room. Just as fast as | would light
one candle and 60 to the other end Of the room
! 70 light the other the rats would cut the first
one down. They we're regular Confederate
rats, and candle was a godsend to them. AT.
ter u lot Of worry got the rats out of the way,
and sat down near the door waiting tor deve
opments There | stayed till IL o'clock; but
though kept my eyes on the potatoes all the
time, | couldn't see any of them going Short
" after IL heard u creaklng, grating sound,
which seemed to be all ever the room at once
cooked my gun and held my breath, but still
couldn't see any sign OF life except the rats
creeping about the floor by Georgen |
thought this darned place is haunted if there
is any such thing rs place being haunted
The sound stopped, but about ten minutes at
ter 1t began again. | looked at the pile of po-
tatoes, and presently saw something shoot
from the ceiling and fall on them. saw it
was Il brick, and could distinguish rope tied
to it. crept Il little nearer to get a good look
at the thing but before | could examine it, it,
was drawn slowly up and there was about a.
peck of vans sticking to 1t. 1t went up
through hole which had been cut in the floor
above and presently came down again with a.
thump right among the potatoes 1t was the
most artful arrangement you ever saw. The
brick had about fifty holes drilled IN 1t, and
through each hole sharpened ten penny nail
had been rum so that when the brick fell among
the yams these nails stuck into every one they
fell on. | couldn't help laughing at the smart
dodge those Yankees had taken To get at the
yams. | gently put my hand forward and
caught hold OF the rope. Pretty soon they be
gan to draw on it, and when it did not move
heard one fellow say Steady, boys; the
bricks hung IN something. Pull her steadily
without jerking They did pull steadily, and
fairly lifted me from the floor, No jerk easy,
boys, easy, the director said, and they tugged
away got pretty red IN the face holding toI
the rope. | was afraid to let go, because II
thought some OF those spiked nails mightI
strike me in passing thought of my pocket
knife, and hauled it out just rs they were put
ting all their weight on the other end of the
rope. | cut il in two, and the end shot back
through the hole IN the ceiling, and could
hear rolling and tumbling on the floor above,
showing that the sudden giving way Of the
rope had had disastrous effect heard an,
other voice say: There, now. told you so.
You've broken the rope. We've lost our brick,
and tomorrow we'll be found out Then an
other voice called out; Can't you see it! Wei
might hook it up Next | saw a long neck
protruding through the hole, and a fellow peer
ing down. Then | called out: If you trou-
bic any more of those potatoes III shoot That
fellows head shot back through that hole just
like tcrrapln, and it was as still as death upI
there | hated to tell on them, because it was
such a sharp scheme of foraglng on the enemy
but had to- When the officers went up the
next morning to examine the room it took al
long time to find the hole. Those Yankees
had cut hole about foot square through theI
floor, and 1t was done neatly that it took eyes
to discover 1t. That was where the officers
yams went to-"
There were two characters connected with
Libby Prison whose whereabouts doubtless
many an ex.prisoner would like to know
was an old darkey who had the run of the es-
Enlistment, and who generally came by sun
rise to waken the prisoners. He made it hisl
business to get some one outside the prison tot
read him the dispatches from the seat of war
and these he turned over in his mind until hel
had managed to work them into a graphic de
scrption Of the battle, generally managing toI
give the victory to the Union forces. The keen
old fellow had learned that reports Of Union
victories eated the prisoners to such IN extent
that they became liberal, and rewarded him
for his cheering intelligence. lie would come
in the room, and sing out at the top OF hisl
voice: Look sharp, dar! Here is wild del
latest talogrtick spatches from the seat OIL
war" This signal was enough, and the prls-
oners would crowd around the willy old darkey
while he related "de latest 'spatches," which
often ended with the gratifying intelligence,
AN Glnrel Lees men dey took n run" Old
Ben, although he claimed to be Northern
sympathizcr, was deeply grieved when thel
war ended, as it closed the Libby and deprived
him of his occupation. After the evacuation
he hung around the old place tor week orr
more, and took pride in showing it to such
Union soldiers as had never seen 1t before. Hell
atterward was engaged with gangs of negroes
in cleaning bricks in the burnt district The
old fellow lived about ten years after the war,
and died in want.
The General was u younger negro, whoI
was almost as taciturn as "Old Ben" was To-
quacious. He was a prison official, his prln-
cipa occupation being the tumigatlon of the
prison. Every morning he went through each
room with pan OF burning tar TO give theI
place what he termed "a good Union smoke"
He left Richmond soon after the war and went
North With him disappeared the last of the
Libby officials in Richmond.
Will the South remain solid? Decidedly
our impression is it villas long as the North