Shenandoah herald. [volume] (Woodstock, Va.) 1865-1974, 1890-02-28
TO Be shot AT NOON.
A TRUE STORY OF THE WAR,

Never mind what my business
was, or how l was betrayed, and
how I was gathered in. Enough
that they bagged me $50 miles in
side the enemey's lines, aud hus
tied me off to prison at For
! McHenTy, in Baltimore Harbor,
where was confronted with the
charge OF being a spy. No matter
that had on when captured my
! full uniform as captain. No mat
ter that at my court martial trial
their own officer, who captured
me, testified that he did not take
me in as a spy, and that there was
10 work for a spy where be captur'
ed me.
| No matter; was found guilty,
aud the sentence was read to me
"To be hanged as spy on the pa
rade ground of Fort MeHenry,
between the hours OF II A. NJ. and
I3P. NJ. November 8, 1868"
In answer to my request that il
I they must kill me, for the sake of
honor to give me the death of a
soldier, they graciOusly changed
! the papers to read. "TO be shot
to death with musketIy on the pa
rade ground, etc"
Somehow, l did not fully com
prebend or adequately appreciate
NY situation, for l did not feel
then any more than do now that
death was to be my next DEAL
/ Nor had | at all contemplated that
result all through the trial. Only
/ the last day before the sentence
was read to me | had been Great
/ ing merrlment by asking pnzzling
or irrelevant question of the Judge
advocate, telling jokes during the
recesses of the court, in divers
manners creating fun to draw
mirth tOr myself out of the barren
rock, "military justice" Only the
day before the president OF the
court martial, the colonel of the
regiment, Il of whose officers com.
posed my adjudicators, asked tC
talk little with me in private, as
between man and mao.
"Of course"
"Captain,' said he, 81 greatly
fear you do not properly appreci
ate your present situation"
"Well, colonel, ! know of nc
man more tavOrably situated tC
realize it. Why do you say so :"
Because, sir, yOur life is al
stake in this trial"
"Well?7
"N ell, you'll be found guilty
most assuredly of the charge"
"Wellw ~
"You'll be sentenced to die"
"Well ?"
"Aud you'll be hanged or shot
And here you have been spending
the leisure hours of the court try
ing YOU for your life in frivolou:
testing aud mlrth. AS a fellow
man, 1t grieves me to see you care
lessly playing at so terrible a brink
as you stand on"
Colonel" was the reply, {"
thank YOU for your interest, II WI
are national enemies. You speai
as a man and a soldier. But lie
p me say this" (NOw, l cannot ex
. plain what induced me to max
the following foolish, braggiS
+ speech, but it bubbled up and wa
h spoken y "COlonel, you or / ma
die before might've do not know
bat in so far as the result of you
court's finding is concerned sha
DO alive when you aud your twelv
officers are dead and forgotten"
He left me in disgust, and | don
blame him. Bot such was my fee
mg. l did not "feel it in M
i, bones," as the slang goes, th'
i, death was so near.
IS The colonel ana the entire
IFS composing the court died before
~ was exchanged-"shOt to dealt
e. in one charge at Cold Harbor.
90 live 10 write the occurrence
les years after the conversation.
1t may OF may not be true VIII
- the grim monster singles cut Il
victim 10 sends him in some WI
= spiritaral prenOmlnitiOn that
W Is gong to let fl from deatt
':'; quiyer the fatal dart. Be that
me lt may, | bad no premOmtlon
"a l.i death.
~ Not WREN they stood me up
Ssi, hear NY sentence and TO answ'
$, nor as,crWard in the cool cOnte
platiou my isolation and sile
- dungeon afforded +; not when t
2, Officer OF the day, on that EVENT.
execution morning, read to me
my dungeon the days program