The National tribune. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1877-1917, 1888-02-02
WASHINGTON c. THURSDAY

apply strategy to the proposed movements. By
the time l climbed up that perpendicular cliff
to the side of the road through a thicket of last
years blackberry bushes that were apparently
growing out Of a stone-quarry, was so done
up that | had to sit down fat on the ground
a while to ponder. l had expended sufficient
strength and nerve in making that climb to
have carried me miles past the house if had
only made dash on the straight road.
From my seat on the rocks among the
bushes, which was elevated considerably above
the winding road down the mountain, I could
see by the refraCted sunset in that clear atmOs-
phere a long ways ahead Of me. There seemed
to be thick, almost dense. growth of timber,
which was still below me, so that | looked over
the tops of the trees. knew that somewhere
in that general direction were the Union
forces which had recently attacked the rebels
at the Gap. I could only imagine that their
Outposts of cavalry were within, say, few
miles at farthest.
The house that I was working so hard to
avoid was yet seemingly as close as it had been
before l had quit the road but from my iso-
lated position | could see only the top of it.
The road had become lost under the tree-tops.
Looking back l could see nothing but the
stockades at the top of the Gap, and these l
could only locate in the fast gathering twilight
because l knew their exact position. There
werc no signs of life behind me nor before me,
except that the smoke kept rushing straight
up from the chimney-top, until it formed in
appearance a Waterspont in the evening sky.
Up TO that time | might have safely returned
to the rebel camps; or if had been halted and
arrested, it would not have been difficult
matter to have accounted for my being out Of
bounds at the time. But had no intention of
returning; l had started for home and / was
willing to risk everything to get there. l
knew very well that at that very moment l
oJi ind
sort Of way that causes me a shudder as | write
it down here to-day. If / had been stopped
about this time | should have been liable to
summary execution on the simple charge of
deseTtion to the enemy, and of course any de-
lay in the execution of this sentence must have
resulted only in my character as a spy being
discovered by an investigation which must fol-
low. While thinking over these things for the
moments | sat on that mountain-side that even
ing, | recalled my similar experience while
trying to get out of Beauregard's army in Vir-
ginia. ] planned a plausible excuse TO offer in
case l should accidentally run into anything
hostile, when it occurred to me that the otii-
cial papers about the strength of Beauregard's
army in August, 1861, which | had gotten out
of the telegraph office and had endeayored to
smuggle through, were the cause of my great
est danger that time and / had resolved then
that would never again be caught with any
papers in my possession.
Following my thoughts with the movement
of my hands into my pockets to strip myself Of
papers and be prepared for dash for liberty, |
hauled out the letter which the Captain had
handed to me with specific instructions to de-
liver to Lieut.. Elkton.
] destroyed it with a good deal Of energy,
after having first .neTvously opened and read
it. BY that one simple act | had cut down the
last bridge behind me. But you will not be
surprised at my rash conduct in thus r0bbing
~. f. 4. 7 a -
stance of the letter, as nearly as can Tecolect;
and, by the way a lifetime, long and check
cred lifetime, will not serve TO eface from the
memory the recollections of such days and
nights as this in ones experience.
! have not forgotten anything that happened
on this day and night Of my life and | offer
this as an apology for dwelling SO long on the
incidents as they occurred. I do not tell all of
the story now and only that which 1 think
viii be least tresome.
THE LETTER,
which was securely sealed, read something like
this:
HEADQUARTERS NEAR KEoXvILLE.
Lieut.. ELKToN, Commanding Detachment Mary
land Artillery, Cumberland Gap:
! send you by the muster-roll, etc.
1t was the intention to 60 myself, but we have
some prospect of move in another direction, and
will wait here for further orders. We have bor-
rowed This horse from the staff 50 that these papers
can be fixed up and returned by - SO they can
be returned to Richmond.
have letter from Richmond asking about the
antecedents Of --, and the purpose of sending
him up is that you and the Colonel" F" [the Ser
geanpl who brought him in can answer
/ My information is that he is wanted in Rich
mond for something I'm waiting to hear through
the Secretary Of War. (Sigued.)
This was enough for me- was not going back
now; in fact I'd rather be shot in trying to
/ escape in Kentucky, than to be deliberately
/ hung in Virginia.
This accounted for the Captains curious
1 questions the day left him. Isaw it all at once.
Though it was getting on toward dark on the
m0untain-side, | gotupon my yfeetsuddenly and
i buckled on my armor, as it were, and prepared
/ to fly. It was getting little late in the even
ing for a stranger to be out alone in that cOun-
try, but / had considerable Of motive behind
me and something Of an inducemeut in front
Indeed I felt for the time being that 1 could
almost fly, so eager was ! to get there. In
starting of so suddenly neglected to properly
take my bearings, so plunged down straight
/ ahead over the rocks and through the bushes
/ only knowing that | was going in the gen.
eral direction which led me further away from
/ the rebel camps that had left up on top Of the
hill. l kept
GOING, GOING, BLISDLY
straight ahead, but making little progress ]
wasn't the least bit tired then; while | sal
down 10 read that letter / had rested wonder
fully in a short time. It was only when ]
climbed down of the big hill or mountain, and
had plunged like scared deer into the dense
growth Of woods that was at the foot Of the
mountain, that | was stopped almost abruptly
by the sudden appearance Of darkness, which
seemed TO have dropped around me like a cur
tain. The curtain wasn't pinned with q star
because ] couldn't see the evening star on tho
horizon ON account Of the tS4es that were as
thick here as the blackberry bushes had been
up on tie top of the mountain.
/ could only see the sky by looking straight
up; / don't know that / looked up either: in
fact ! don't believe / did. Ny recollection j:
that ! was only concerned about where to put
nay feet, and, as a consequence / was Obliged
TO look down pretty much all the time aud
pretty sharply. ] should have appreciated just
then, more than anything else, "a lamp untt
my feet and light unto my path.
Il took me little while to "get used to it,
as they say when one plunges into a dark
night. didn't get thoroughly broken in tha
night; maybe because / was scared ard ex
cited just then.
was alone in deep, dark woods somewher
between tie outposts Of the two armies, in Oh,
neighborhood Of Cumberland Gap
Though everything around me had becomt
ob5cured by the thick darkness that one car
only feel on dark night, ! kept going, as
supposed, straight ahead, clambering over fallei
I logs; stretching out my hands as / stepped
cautiously ahead Of me to guard against q to-
sudden contact with the trunks Of trees
I-s- IL 4