Port Tobacco times, and Charles County advertiser. (Port Tobacco, Md.) 1845-1898, 1884-04-18


ion frontier with all the necessities
and traditions Of slavery. The Govern
ment paid but little attention to them,
seeing that they were below the line
Of military operations, divided by a
broad river from the ragged pennsulas
of the rebellion; and therefore, there
almost Immediately sprang up in low
er Maryland, system of contraband
travel and tr ffic which soon demoral-
lied nearly everybody.
Thomas y. Jones, who lad some
what risen in the world and had few
slaves, svmpathized warmly with the
South; he owned a farm right at
Fope's Cr, ek. the most eligible sltua-
tion of all for easy intercourse with
Virginia. His house was on hluff
eighty to one hundred feet high, from
which e could look up the Potomac
to the west, across Matthias Point, and
see at least seven miles of the river
way, while his view down the Potomac
was fully nine miles.
The moment actual war broke out,
and intercourse ceased at Washington
and above it with Virginia. great mum
hers of reople came to Jones and to
that Of his next nei ghkor on the bluff.
Major Rcderick c. Watson, asking to
be sent across the Potomac. These
fugitiv,s were Of all descriptions: law
yers. busIn, IS m,n, women, resigned
amy officers, adyenturers, suspe c'ed
persons,-tven the agents of foreign
bankers ard of foreign countries.
M.ior Watson had large frame
house. IT latively new. two stories high.
with Gormer windows in the high roof.
and with Il servants wing. He had
son in tie Confederate army. and
grown up Gaug ghters: and his house
becan e the signal station for the Con
ftderatCs across the river. one Of his
daughters setting the signal, which
consisted Cf shaw r other black
object. put up at the dormer window.
Whenever il was not safe to send the
boat across r., m Virginia This win
dow was kept in focus from Grimsss
iltust TN lllt w IItI sldS, hotut IVY
miles and half dis'ant,-a small low
house. planted at the waters ed &c
from which he glass could read the
signal. which no Federal officer.
whether in his gnn-foat or ashore,
could suspect. Major Watson was
somew hat advanced in years. and died
while his neighbor Jones WAS serving
an imprisonment in the Old Capitol
prison.
On Jores's return TO his home. he
therefore became the mes. trusted
neighbor Of the Watson family. and
they accommodated him as he assisted
them. The voung lady in the family
Was as enthusiastic for the Confederate
cause. and as discreet in all her talks
and walks as Jones himself. on whose
countenance no, human being could
could ever read what was passing
within his mind. He bad attended t"
his fishery and his farm until the war
broke out, without having had an in
cident TO mark his life: but suddenly
there was an incursion Of strangers to
whose needs his rooted ideas of hospi
'alitv 10 less than his sympathy for
the Confederates, led him to hearken.
His farming was almost broken up,
and he took TO crossing the river near
ly every night, and sometimes twice or
more of night, with boats, sometimes
rowed by two pairs of oars, at others
hv three. while he steered with an oar
in the stern. The interloE ers could ride
down from Washington to Pope S
Creek in six or seven hours. and Jones
could put them at Grimec's house op-
posite in less than lour The idea
of making money in this traffic never
seems TO have occurred TO the man at
all; he regarded these strangers as
| inlrusteG to his care bv Providence or
pity; and although his liberty was
Iconstantly in danger, he seldom re-
Ceived more than dollar or two for
taking anybody across. Some persons
argued with him that he did not charge
enough. and told him to look out for
/ his fan ilv and the future; but, as the
sequel will show, he did a vast amount
Of hard and dangerous labor for next to
nothing, and in the end the Confeder-
ate Government also left him unpaid.
The original rebel route from Pope's
Greek to Richmond was through Fred
erlcksburg; but this being considera
/ bly to the west, u new route was open
ed over the old road to Port Royal on
the Eappahannock River. Advent
urers were taken by Jones or his
neighbors across to Grimes's, who, as
sisted by one or two of his neighbors,
carried them by vehicles in three OF
four hours to Port Conway, where a
ferry was maintained across the Rap,
pa ahannock River to Port Royal, and
eighteen miles beyond it the high road
from Washington to Richmond was
open. Mr.. Jones says that he may
have crossed the Potomac one hundred
times before he was arrested, but has
no record of the days.
In the latter part of June, 1861
General Sickles came with troops te
the lower Potomac to keep watch OIL
the contraband intercourse. Grimes
was found on the Maryland shore ant
sent to Fort Delaware. Jones was
arrested when he returned from hi
; visit to Richmond and sent to the Ole
Capitol prison at Washington, ant
kept there six months. He was al
. lowed to write to his family, subjec
to the inspection Of his letters, and t.
talk TO any Of them when an tffice
J was by. This imprisonment, togethe
with his adventurous cruises previous
) ly, sharpened his wits, increased hi
knowledge of men and the world, an,
r educated him Tor the official position
he was soon afterward to occupy o
? chief signal agent of the Coniedrac
north of the Potnmac Misfortunes