Gloucester County Democrat. (Woodbury, N.J.) 1878-1932, 1891-12-17

A PRISONER OF WAR
The Escape Of Two Union Off,
GERS from MilIen, Ga.
By ALFRED R. CALHOUN Gate Major
.. S. Volunteers.
Copyright, 1891. by American Press Associa-
tion.
CHAPTER XII.
THE END OF THE STORY AND or TOM BELLS
LIFE
THE END OF THE STORY AND or TOM BELL

49,
I BELL FELL DEAD WITH A BULLET IN HIS
+ HEART.
This story ends really with our enter
4 ing our lines on the Chattahoochee
4 but / feel that those who have read st
far are interested in Bells subsequent
/ career; they naturally infer that l, whC
am writing twenty-six years after The
( events have tried to describe. am ali
right. can say with truth that I never
met more original or more manly
man than Tom Bell. IL he had been ed
ucated and lived at different time he
would have made his mark and left the
impress of great talents on the record OF
his times. Physically he was, think
I the handsomest man l ever saw. He
1 was strong as lion, active as tiger
/ and affectionate as child At first his
4 profanity, or what l took to be profan.
4 ity, shocked me, but at heart this gal
liant fellow was as intensely religious as
Peter the Hermit, and he had a sense Of
duty stronger than his fear Of death.
I 1t was the custom Of the authorities
during the war to give at least thirty
\ days leave Of absence, or furlough, to
/ all men who had escaped from the
enemy, but the men from the border
states could not, as a rule, avail them.
selves Of this privilege. To go home did
not mean peace or rest. The enemy was
on every side, often the nearest neigh
Dor, and the guerrilla was prowlin2
when the raider was driven off; and So
H there were no leaves for Tom Bell or fol
myself; at least, we elected not to ac-
cept them.
We were most generously treated by
cur comrades in and about Marietta,
aud after we had seen the pay1naster
H and borrowed such articles OF clothing
as the quartermaster could not supply
we decided to run up to Nashville to get
our outfits, l TO 90 back to the army
then besieging Atlanta, and Bell tt
4 make his way to General Gillem's com
mand, then operating in the neighbor-
hood Of Cumberland Gap. Before leav
4 ing Marietta we had the pleasure oi
( greeting the three wounded Confederate:
I with whom we had messed in the wood:
the night before we struck our lines
We had reported their whereabouts, a;
we promised, and they We're placed il
our hospitals, to the great delight Of the
/ poor fellows
At the hotel in Nashville, Bell and
slept in a room with two beds, but OF
the night Of Aug. 13-we were to par
next morning he said to me:
I 'We uns is gwine to part, cap, ans
hit may be ez how we won't never NEE
again this side etarnity.n
Nonsense, Bell, interrupted, 'we1
i pull through the war and live to tall
over, as old men, our adventures dowr
\ in Dixie"
Bell shook his head. had never
known him to be more solemn in hi.
manner, not even when we We're burn
I ing with hunger and footsore and weary
we tore through the jungle with the pur
v suers close behind
Let us sleep together for the las
night. Hit'll be easier to talk, and hit'll
not be SO hard to recall the id hare
times we uns hez had together. | some
times nigh give plum up believin il
God, but he took we uns each by tht
hand and pulled Us squar through, and
so preserved US that we uns mout give
the enemy hi, and I'm gwine to do hit
( jest as quick ez kin git down to whal
our folks is in the mountains
\ We slept together that night and Bel
/ opened his heart to me as he never hat
done before. He deplored his lack 81
education. but he had made up his minC
to study as soon as the war was over
We had called that day on Andrew John
son, who was then military governor 3.
Tennessee and living in Nashville. Witt
# the career Of this remarkable man in his
mind, Bell said:
My dad llnowed Andy johnson whe1
he left Moth Caliny and come over The
mountains to Greenville to start tail
orin, and he didn't know B from a bulls
foot Now see whar he is" and Bel
lifted his arm into the darkness.
told my friend that Governor John
son had been helped very much by his
wife, and I suggested that if he got 8
good wife she would no doubt aid him
i to achieve his laudable ambition.
He laughed for some time, as if enjoy
ing his secret thoughts, and in reply tc
my question as to the cause, he said:
Il was jist A thinlIin of how many
4 times durin our 'scape I've told that cuss
ed story about my bein wounded Con
fed, tryin to get back to my pore wife
and chillen in the mountains. Wy,
was nigh most comm to believe that
was reg larly married, and had lot OF
yaller headed young uns a-watchin fo' my
return. But I'm a-gwihe to give yor
uns dead secret
Seeing that he paused, | assured hin
that Ishould remain silent as to any com
munication he chose to make until he
gave me leave to speak. Very slowly and
with solemnity that struck me as be
ing very inappropriate, Bell continued:
''rm in love with a gal down Ashevillt
way, and have been since the yeah befoE
the wah. She cottons up to me, you
ken bet yer last picayune. And jest e2
soon ez the fuss is ovah me and her'I
splice"
In response to my inquiry as to hei
appearance, wealth and intelligence, he
said, as nearly as can recall:
"Waal, cap, ther amt none of we uns
ez is what folks that live in towns and
on plantations ed call even tollably well
off. Molly's a preachers daughter, and
ef thar's another preacher in Moth
Caliny can come up to him in offhand
! tallsin and prayin. or in downright
Screpture argument, I'd like to see him
trot himself out and show his PAGES 70
money. But wen tell you and all the
world that no man dar come to my fact