The Indianapolis journal. [volume] (Indianapolis [Ind.]) 1867-1904, 1886-02-17

friends and sympsthisers here in indianapolis.
Letters were struggled into camp from them,
and frequently favors were sent which were ap-
preciated more than the missiveB- These sub
stantial favors consisted Of good things to eat.
dainties that the regulations did not furnish to
the imprisoned rebs. One day a sugar-cured
ham found its way to young Crooker's mess.
The hams were covered with canvas, which was
painted a bright chrome yellow. Croker was OF
an ingenious turn of mind. the yellow wrapping
cut out a stunning pair of shoulder-straps for
himself and fashioned sergeants cheyrons for a
messmate.
soldier was on duty at the gate. With all the
assurance possible, and the easy familiarity of
an officer who didn't care to assume any airs
over the boys, he gave a friendly word to the
guard, cracked a joke about the Johnny rebs,
and passed out with his sergeant" They were
hardly outside tho lines before the guard sus-
pected that he had been tricked, and gave the
alarm, but Croker and his comrade made good
their escape. That night they were both
furnished suits of citizens clothing in the
city by some sympathizer, and Croker was
actually in the city for two or three days and on
the streets mingling with Uncle Sans boys.
He then left and went to Lawrenceburg. There
the marshal Of the town. Jack Gray, attempted
to arrest him as an escaped prisoner, for Croker
was known there, but he was again aided to
escape ana went TO CINCINNATI, from Wn0r0 ne
crossed over to Newport and enlisted in the
United States regular army. and no great time
afterward was sergeant of the squad that passed
Clement L. Valandignam, of Ohio. through the
lines into the hands of the confederates.
When the Fourth Tennessee Cavalry, a Union
regiment under command Of Colonel Brownlow,
son of the famous Parson Brownlow, was organ
lied and loyal Tennesseeans were needed to
officer the rude, but loyal East Tennesseeans.
Croker, with his usual good luck, was made
VnnTAN ~ <h~ AnA H. -&,-@ = ALA
army until the close of the war, a good officer
and loyal man. and is now living at Nit Vernon,
ILL.,
There was nothing during the war, after
active hosiilities began, that excited the people
of Indiana more than Adam Johnson's raid on
Newburg. a town on the Ohio river, thirteen
miles above Evansville. in July. 1862. 1t
was the first invasion Of q Northern
State by an armed and organized
force of rebels, and almost within twenty four
hours after the news flashed over the State,
troops were moving toward Evansville from In
dianapolis, Lafayette. Terre Haute and Craw-
louisville, to protect the southern border
OF the State from the depredations of
the enemy. "There were a great many rather
ludicrous things about Johnson's raid, said an
old soldier from Evansville, who was reminded
of the invasion by a Journal reporter last even
Aa6t ~ kAhS tALA0 4 " OVD4O WY 6VAk
Gus to the people of that section.
johnson didn't have more than a
pocketful of ~men-thirty. two in ali,
including officers, and these he had gathered to-
gether in the southwestern counties of Ken
lucky, opposite Evansville. for the purpose of
committing depredations on the property of all
persons supposed to be in sympathy with the
Union. Some Of the men were deserters from the
federal army. 1t is supposed that
johnson was acting as an independent
Cnori1ta phJaf M fha az fiuoa h1f gonna fipa oftar.
ward he was given the rank of colonel in the
army and was authorized to re-
cruit or conscript for Bragg's army. His little
band was a terror in the region it h~arassed, and
row when, in 1864. johnson received a
wound which made him blind. and brought his
pillaging excursions to an end. A hospital had
been established at Newburg. and about a hun
dred wounded soldiers had been sent there,
while q considerable amount of commissary
stores were in the hospital building, to-
gether with the guns and ammunition of
two Newburg companies of Legion. About
seventy-ive sabres and a lot of pistols were also
stored in a warehouse in the place. There were
several rebel synpathizers in Newburg, just as
there were in all border towns, and some Of
these communicated the state of affairs in the
town to johnson. telling him that he
could easily capture the place, and get
the stores. The citizens of Newburg awoke, one
bright summer morning. to discover what ap-
peared to be a terrible cannon on the opposite side
of the river, pointed toward the town. A squad
Of men crossed to the Indiana shore and in
formed the people that if the town did not at
once surrender the cannon would be turned
loose on it. The town surrendered. John
son took possession. required the
soldiers in the hospital to sign
paroles of honor, and carried away the guns
and ammunition. together with nearly every
thing else that wasn't nailed down. When the
town recovered from it's fright, it was learned
that the terrible cannon, which had terrified the
population. was an old log, hollow at one end,
which had been mounted on a pair Of wagon
wheels"
When anything went wrong in the army.
said Gen. Tom Bennett last evening, the major
general abused the brigadier, and the brigadier
turned upon the colonel, and the colonel had it
with a major or a captain. One time my
brigadier- general jumped me, and l in
turn raked a captain. and the captain
went for a lieutenant, and I was determined to
see whore this shifting responsibility would end,
and found that the lieutenant harmed the order
ly sergeant, and the orderly took a sergeant to
task who abused a corporal, while the corporal
bounced a private. Surely it will end here !
said, but that private got a club and went out
and knocked down a mule"
John S~haugnessy's Will.
John Shauenessy's will was probated vester-