The National tribune., 1885-01-15

wonderful that in all the exigencies of this ex-
petition no one of his soldiers had been per-
mitted to fire a single shot, even to draw q
revolver upon the enemy. He now considered
that when scattered each one, as we'll rs him.
self, would be able to find concealment, or if
captured to evade detection by false stories.
This was a great mistake. The second reason
for adopting this fatal course was the belief that
the scattering of the party would also scatter
pursuit, and make it less eager in any one d.
rection. Under ordinary circumstances such
would have been the result. But the terror
and the fierce resentment aroused by the daring
character of our enterprise caused the whole
country to burst into blaze of excitement, and
the pursuit to be pushed with equal energy for
scores of miles in every direction.
An opposite course would have been far more
hopeful. We were but II or 10 miles from
Chattanooga. Twenty miles of travel to the
northwest would have placed US on the opposite
bank of the Tennessee River, among the loyal
mountaileers of the district. If we had re-
manned together we could have traveresed that
broken and wooded country which lay before
US as rapidly as any pursuing soldiers. No
body of citizens not perfectly organized and
armed would have ventured to halt us. Cav
airy pursuit away from the main roads was
impossible Besides, one of our party possessed
a ocket-compass, and two others, besides An
drews, were somewhat acquainted with the
country The writer is convinced that we
might have left the cars in body, and with
out even attempting cOncealment, but only
avoiding the public roads, have hurried d.
rectly towards Mitchers lines, and within 49
hours have been safe i'll his camp.
But we can neither wonder at nor blame the
mistake made by our leader on this occasion,
though it led to months of Indebtedness and
the death of many of the party. Andrews had
met each new emergency with heroic calmness
and unfailing resources; but he was now phys
ically exhausted. He had been engaged in the
most intense and harassing labor for many
days, being without sleep for the past 80 hours
and without food for 20. An error in action
was therefore most natural and excusable, even
if it disagreed with the course which had been
marked ont in calmer moments. Wilson says:
Andrews now told us all that it was every man
for HIMSELF; that we must scatter and do the best
could to escape to the Federal lines
This then, was the formal dissolution of the
expedition by the order of its leader. When
we were brought together again under widely
different circumstances, we were simply a col
lection of soldiers, and while we respected the
Judgment and advice of Andrews, we no longer
considered that we owed him military obedi-
ence.
AS Conductor Fuller now disappears from
our story, where he has been so conspicuous
and where his energy, skill, and daring shine
in such brilliant cOlOrs, few words may be
appropriately devoted to his work and subse-
quent history. All the evidence goes to show
that the Confederacy had no other available
man who could have saved the bridges ON the
Western & Atlantic Railroad that day. With
the exception of himself and his two COM
pani0ns, who were in sense subordinate to
him, though their services were of very high
value, no other person seemed capable of plan
ming or doing anything whatever With a
conductor of less energy in the place of this
OA.t,, @h.,E hR--o
had the whole day uninterruptedly for the
accomplishment of our task. But for Fuller's
daring and perseverance the extra trains would
have but added to the number of wrecks along
the line as one after another ran upon the
places where the track had been torn up; while
the burning of the bridges and the loss of tele-
graphic communications would have difused d
universal panic.
The Legislature of Georgia gave Fuller a
instructed the Governor to bestow upon him a
gold medal; but, as as he lau9hingly said years
after, " Gold was so scarce in the South that it
was hard to find enough for medal. 1t was
therefore postponed for time and then came
the final collapse Of the COnfederacy, and got
nothing" The Confederate authorities gave
him the rank Of Captain by brevet. OF course,
the Federal Government could not recognize
services rendered against itself of however
striking character. No one of the adventures
ever expressed any malice towards Conductor
Fuller, believing that he simply did what he
regarded as his duty. He retained his place as
conductor until the whole road passed under
the control OF Gen. Sherman, when he enlisted
in the army. After seeing considerable mill
tary service, he was directed by the Confedcr
ate Government TO take charge of the rolling
stock of the Western & Atlantic Railroad, and
keep it out of the 5landS of the Federals. He
removed it to various parts of Georgia and
South Carolina as the exigencies of the war
and the narrowing territory of the Confeder-
acy required. Finally, when the supremacy of
the Union was restored, he brought it back to
Atlanta and surrendered it to Federal author
ity. He afterwards resumed his place as con-
ductor on the same road, and remained in that
situation until 1875, when he located as mer-
chant in Atlanta. Here for many years he de-
lighted in talking over this day of wild adven-
ture.
Of his two companions, Cain continued for
more than 20 years as an engineer on the same
road, while Murphy built up a prosperous
business as lumberman in Atlanta.
To be cOntiuUed1