The National tribune., 1885-02-19
NATIONAL TRIBUNE WASHINGTON THURSDAY FEBRUARY

with instant death II he did not. But no one
was moved. The opinion seemed to be that the
discovery of the, engineer would reveal the
whole mystery Of the enterprise. In this they
were mistaken, but the opinion was not un-
natural. They would also ask in many forms
the question, How came it that you would
consent to leave. your camp in citizens clothes
for an enterprise you knew nothing about, and
under the leadership OF person you had never
seen, aud whose rank and position you say you
were ignorant Off" The answer was always
the same in substance: ave were told by our
officers to follow this man, and we considered
it a soldiers duty to obey" had to pass a
more protracted examination than any of the
others, perhaps because had told Gen. Lead
better so many of MY differences about war
affairs when first taken before him. For two
or three days was even separated from my
comrades and daily questioned. l thus gained
"a short relief from the horrors of the negro
prison, and could easily have secured my own
safety by dishOnor; but although l talked
freely, did not go single word beyond the
line which Wilson and myself, with the ap-
proval of all the others, had marked ont. At
last overheard the acute lawyer who acted as
examiner on these occasions say to Gen. Lead
BETTER i" 1t is no use. He is either ignorant or
too sharp to tell anything" l felt greatly
c0mplimented, and was then taken back to the
horrors of the old dungeon, where l was
warmly We1CcmtU Ny NY SoihiouSS' uiosb VI
whom had passed similar though briefer
ordeal. 1t was on this occasion that the officer
of the guard happened to lay newspaper he
was reading near me, was hungry for news,
and in moment seized and concealed it in my
clothing. 1t was missed and great search
made, but as l was handcutfed and looked in
nocent suspicion did not fall on me. 1t was a
great prize, for it contained a complete account
of our chase as given by our pursuers. Through
a cnhSaunppf adj /
served it, and at the date of writing it is still in
my possession. The estimate it gives of the
military importance of our expedition and of
what we actually accomplished, goes beyond
what has been sketched in the preceding
pages.
After these examinations were over, the
misery of our dungeon-life closed about us
again. Whether we would be left there to
perish, or whether some kind of trial would
be given us with the alternatives of release or
execution, what was the position of the armies
outside, or the progress of the war,-we could
not tell. In dreams only we were free. / re-
member lying down one afternoon and dream
ing of the most beautiful snow capped noun
tain in East Tennessee, and awakening with a
many hours. But even dreams were not all
thus pleasant; too often they rivalled the prison
itself in shapes of terror and pain.
One or two of our number managed to con-
ceal a little money when searched, and as our
ratiOns were very small, it was resolved to spend
it for food. The jaler agreed to get us any
provisions we wanted, so far as the money
would go. There was an anxious discussion as
to the most profitable mode of investment.
Wheat bread and molasses-the latter being
very cheap-were chosen, and the precious
money tied to the rope, which was our only
mode of communication with the upper world,
and drawn up. 1t was at our evening meal. We
knew Swims would not trouble himself to
bring the provisions that evening, but we antici-
pated a bountiful breakfast, with the Keen
ness that only starving men could feel. When
the breakfast bucket dangled Mt the end of the
rope the next morning, it was quickly seized,
and 10! only the usual misery allowance of
'pone" and meat. Mr.. Swims, have you got
the bread and molasses yet?" eagerly demanded
n voice from below. In his most whining tones
he drawled out, ''B-o-y-s lost that money"
Had he been on our level instead of 13 feet
above. he might have learned how desperate
men can become when hungry. But there was
no remedy. The captain of the guard, when
appealed to, considered it good joke!
To be coutaued.)