The Mankato free press. [volume] (Mankato, Blue Earth County, Minn.) 1879-1924, 1888-03-09

and then went into the large house to get our
hats. Just then three men walked in. They
talked a little time about the weather and
the war and we began to edge toward the door.
They asked us if we had not broken Jail in At
lanta, We told them that We had. Then they
advised US to surrender, saying that the ferries
and roads were all guarded, and that part of our
comrades had been shot down in the woods, and
that they had come to take us. Brown said: mo,
ont of the back door and made for the neighbor-
ing wood, Jumping the fence and running like
two deer. They ran out at the front door and
round the end of the house, calling, Halt haiti"
but we did not halt. We had no choice but to
abandon Mason, who was taken back to Atlanta
the same day. We undertook to cut across the
the open plantation; but we failed and
had to take the risk. The old fellow with
whom we had stayed turned his hounds loose
and put t=em on our trail Wehad a big hill to
reach 1! e woods. We put in our best ticks, and
could hear the hounds coming their best. We got
down the hin and across the HAT, and were climb
ing the hi9, when we saw that the hounds were
about TO oyGrtIkc us, and we prepared for battle
by stopping in q stony place and getting pile OF
rocks ready. We waited Tor them to come close
up, an 10 tx them at short range. We rolled
them down tn" hill, and then as the southerners
used to say after ba tie: "Tc won the victory,
but we evacuated the ground;" for by this time
we could see our three callers coming around the
road near by, on horseback, to get ahead of us
We got to the woods as soon as possible, and
when we were out of sight changed our course so
part Of their hounds rallied so that they would
follow along and howl on our track, but they
could not be made TO close up on us any more
After awhile we would see these horsemen head
ing us off again. and then we would cut in an
other direction, and the hounds would give them
our course again. About noon we came TO a small
would stoop down and take up our hands full Of
water and drink as we ran. We kept in the bed
Of that stream for a couple of hours and then the
hounds lost track of us. Soon after we reached
m p0CfO Of
lanta, and went on the north side of 1t and con-
cealed ourselves in the grass till dark, when we
picked out the north star and Travelled by it,
For twenty days We travelled by night and
hid by day. Each day, for several days, we
could see them after us, sometimes with dogs.
For SIX days after we ieft Mason we were with
such as nuts, bark, buds, etc On the seventh
day we we're going along little stream that had
willows on both sides, and which ran through
field we wished to cross, as there were mountains
on the other side, and we thought we could get
on their slope and be travelling in the day time.
We had great good fortune here, for we found
two ears of corn on the bank and a flock Of geese
in the creek, one Of which we captured by means
Of the corn, and then getting into the mountains
we commenced to pick our goose. If anybody
ever picked goose without scalding, they know
what kind of job we had! When we got tired
we took each leg and pulled it in twol then we
went along eating our raw goose, taking first a
bite of it. then OF corn. That goose lasted several
daysi
On the tenth day we reached the Chattahoo-
chez river. There was rail fence alongside Of
the woods, and we took two large rails crossed
them near one end, dashed them fast with bark
and putting our clothes on the highest end, we
hoated at the other till we got across. We took a
side
The next evening we came to drove of small
pigs and began to figure for one. Finally stood
pieces Of apple and pitched to the pigs; and soon
one little fellow commenced to pick up the pieces:
then Brown kept working backward till he passed
the tree where stood, and when the pig followed
up shot him with my stickl Previous TO this we
found an iron strap that had fastened shovel to
its handle, and one part OF 1t had been worn thin
This was rubbed up a little on stone and 1t made
a very good butcher knife. We split the pig, and
with each half ran up the side Of the mountain,
and waited till dark for wonderful feasti We
could see over the farm where there was q fire
burning out in back field, and we went there
and roasted pig most of the night. Then we had
one Of those feasts you read about That pig
corner Of North Carolina Here we had thought
we could run boat down by night and hide in
the day time. But when we saw the river we
of great rocks, where we could not have run a
canoe by daylight But we tried TO cross, and
each picked out q rock that we intended to reach.
plunged in and missed my rock, as the current
swept my feet away while tried TO put my hands
on 1t. Hooked to see what had become of Brown
after had got on fiat stone much further down
the river than intended. He was sitting on q
stone laughing at me, though did not see where
the laugh came In. He asked me to walt and see
II he could get that far DOWN. He started, and
landed far below me, and did not feel so much
Like laughingl
But the tug OF war came when we were on the
other side, for now we had to cross the noun
tains which we had been travelling lengthwise be-
fore-mountains lit took two men and boy to see
to the top of itr' It was so rough that we were
four days going eight miles.
In q deep mountain valley beside river we
met two men armed to the teeth. Veal stopped
as II we had been shot, but quickly moved ON
again. We simply spoke when we met, and all
ola f1 Inv
do with each other. Soon we came TO q small log
cabin, the door of which was fast We waited q