The Wheeling daily intelligencer. [volume] (Wheeling, W. Va.) 1865-1903, 1889-02-23

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plot to test me. My suspicious were
soon proved correct, The escort had re-
tired and left me standing in front OF the
entrance, inside, OF course, but Just
where ! was in the way OF anyone COM
ing or going, The whispered consllta-
tion lasted about five minutes, and then
the general casually remarked to me;
Take q seat audI will hear you"
The surgeon was looking me full in
the face, and had l made the slightest
move he must have detected it.
"Sit down." commanded the general
In a louder voice,
VI was looking at his sword hanging
on the tent.pole, and / did not turn my
eyes until he wheeled around in his
chair and beckoned to me to approach.
handed him my tablet and pencil, and
he inquired why / had not q pass and
where J. wanted TO go. explained
about the pass Us before, and told him |
wanted to go to Dalton or Rome and Sc
cure more goods, The General would
have been quite satisfied In five minutes,
but the surgeon was a keen reader OF
human nature, and he was convinced
that l was In disguise. | heard him
whisper his suspicious to others, aud
their lack Of belief made him all the
more determined to expose me, ] had
no fear OF any OF the rest, but l realized
that would take all my nerve and tact to
hold out against the surgeon, Some of
the tests he at once put me to may seem
tribes TO the reader until he can put
himself in the position l occupied. He
rose up suddenly, crossed over TO me,
and slapping me on the shoulder, he ex-
claimed;
"Iet me see your tonguel"
had my teeth hard shut or my jaws
would have opened at the command.
"~Straighten up!" was the next com.
mand, / was bumped over aud the
words went through me like a bullet, |
did not move, however,
"Take your foot of that sashl" shout
ed the surgeon, but l looked from him
to the general and showed my wonder,
"Come, now, but you're beaten |"
laughed one OF the officers, and as the
Others had some remark to make the
surgeon was nettled. He looked at mo
lxedly for u long half minute, and then
said to his comrades:
u won't give in yet, general. Please
hold on to him until we are certain OF
him one woy or the other"
"0h, certainly; but l think you have
made q mistake this time. A deaf and
dumb person always has an expression
not to be counterIeited. He has told a
pretty straight story"
"That Is true; but I want TO study
him a little more. lie claims to have
lost his pass. want to ask him for
more details, What was the dateP"
lilo turned and put this question to
me, and, had l not been looking ahead
for 1t or something OF the kind, my
mouth would have got away with me.
His failure provoked another laugh, and
l wrote on the tablet:
"What does the officer say? Does he
believe l am a deserterl"
HE says you are deCeiving u.s."
II have 1t hard enough now without
being looked on with ridicule or sus.
l wrote, and the general nodded
his head 10 mi and said to the surgeon;
~ wont keep him longer than noon
tomorrow. The poor cuss has IL hard
row to hoo and l don't want to disCour-
age him."
The guard was called, and | was re.
moved TO the guard.house, which was a
log structure and quite comfortable. 1t
held u prisoner, and | had no doubt that
he had been placed there for n purpose.
AS oon as the door shut behind me he
came forward and took my hand and
said:
"Ah, andthey have got you, tool Both
US must die together"
signed TO him that | was q deaf mute,
but he replied:
"Come, no nonsense with mo. know
you, and you will soon know me. !
have seen you at Sherman's headquar.
ters u dozen times. 1 ain jack Ross, u
union spy. / was arrested here a week
igo, tried by court martial, found guilty,
md tomorrow | am to be hung"
He trapped himself right on the start.
AS ! had never been at Sherman's head.
quarters but once, l knew the name OF
lvery spy employed by that army, and
there was no such person US jack Ross.
he worked every way he could think Of
10 trap me, but alter d couple OF hours
hours he gave 1t up as a bad job. ! did
not go to sleep that night, suspeCting
The surgeon would play me some trick.
About midnight he came softly In with
\ couple Of soldiers, and ut u signal the
men screamed in my ears. Then a
was discharged over my body
md the surgeon called out:
"You careless devil! you have wound.
cd him!"
l did not think 80, and l did not
awake" until they pulled at me. Next
morning the pretended spy was taken
out, and l was threatened and %bulldozed
for an hour. After breakfast, as l sat
with my back TO the door, 1t WINS softly
opened, and l heard the click click Of
The hammer Of a revolver. 1t made my
flesh creep, but 1 did not turn. At noon
| was returned to the Generals tent,
He was all alone, and he wrote on the
that was free 10 20 and that he
would give me a pasa. AS he said this
he handed mo n paper, but ten seconds
later quietly remarked:
"See II ! signed my name to IT,"
That was not tho last test. lie con.
iuCted me to the door Of the tent, waved
me past the sentinel, and observed:
"turn to the left to avoid the ditch"
/ turned to the right, bought some
provisions Of a soldier, and after taking
i dinner set out to tho south. / do not
think | was followed or further suspect
Cd. l thoroughly investigated the de.
Of the gap, located the nearest
large bodies OF Confederates, and return.
I'd 10 the union lines with no other dam.
ago than a flesh wound received in the
very lust mile Of travel from u bush.
wh0cker.
How 10 Overcome tho DAngers of Exposure.
Francis o'Reilly, the well.known liv.
cry man OF No. Is Prince street, New
York, says Of ALLcocK's Porous pLAs.