Gloucester County Democrat. (Woodbury, N.J.) 1878-1932, 1891-11-05

Wilkins rose, shook hands with u.s.
wished us godspeed and left; nor did we
need to plead our inability to reward
him. He knew our sore straits and
would have done more to help rs if in
his power
In response to our questions Abe told
us that sometimes weeks passed without
a visit from white men ''All ez wants
to fight is off to de wahs, be said, "and
dem ez doesn't want to fight is a-hidin in
de swamps an long de bottoms, but Of
late de sojers from Sylvania an way
down from Costa hez been a-huntin
'em."
Hunting desertersg' asked.
Eyes, sah''
"Are there many of themg"
WAL, sah," was the reply "the
woods is full OBJ 'em Dem ar desahtahs
done gin Us no eend OBJ trouble. Dey
steal cohn, steal hogs, steal mos cherry
thing. An 70 mohn a yeah dar amt
been chicken on de place. jes' wish
de sojers'd git ebery one ob 'enl-"
Ever have any Yankees here before.
Abe?"
'No, sab; not jes heah, but Fze hearn
OBJ some out long de ribbah."
"Did they get away"
"Don't know, sab, but if de prayin Oh
de cullud folks was heard by de Great
Mastah | reckon dey did, said Abe
Still firm in his purpose to reach the
Savannah and then to follow it to the
mountains, where, like Rob Roy, his
feet would be upon his native heath
Bell asked our host about the country to
the north, but the information was
vague and unsatisfactory, for Abe, All
though man fifty years Of age, had
never been twenty miles away from the
plantation on which he was born. He
could not advise, but he could give US a
place to sleep during the day, mean
while he would task dc good Lor 70
vice an tink de case ovah."
As Abe was about to lead as to place
where we could rest in comfort and se-
curity during the day Bell, who had 4
\ good deal of natural ability az an orator,
made a little speech to the people in the
hut, and although he INDUCED in some
forcible profanity his innocent audience
must have thought it the customary
\ speech Of the Yankees, for they listened
I with open mouths and eyes while he told
them of our former affluence as Yankee
soldiers, and that our present poverty
was owing to our being robbed BY the
rebels. He told them that the war was
nearing an end. and that it could only
I end in the restoration of the Union
about which these slaves knew nothing
and their liberty, which had been the
I object Of their prayers and the one as
I piration Of their simple lives He drew
picture of freedom which | am sure
was never realized-what human hope
4 ever is? know that be moved his little
audience profoundly, for the younger
people compressed their lips with excite
ment and the older ones showed their
approval by such camp meeting excla-
7 nations as "Heah de prayah, Lori
"Send down de angels to guide usrI
LEAD us out oh de lonesome valleyF'
"Glory to Godp ''Amenl Amenl Amenr'
4 Abe took us to the white folks
house, telling MS on the way that al
though "de folks had been gone nigh two
yeah, he had kept it aired, and that no
one had slept there since. With its huge
wooden pillars and wide piazzas, this
house had once been q pretentious affair,
and the scene Of festivity and hospitality;
but the windows were broken, the pill
lars were rotting, there were holes in the
piazza floor, and the walks Of the sur
rounding grounds were overgrown with
weeds, and the ornamental bushes were
strangling in the embrace of wild grape.
vines and Virginia creepers.
The front door hung by one hinge, so
that Abe had to lift it gingerly to keep
it from falling. He explained that the
carpets had been taken from the halls,
parlors, and indeed from all the rooms
to make blankets for the soldiers. The
mildewed furniture, the stained pictures
hanging askew from walls through
which the lathing showed in places, like
ribs, all told of the ruin that had come
to once luxurious homes, though they
were far removed from the scenes Of ac-
tual strife.
While we we're standing in the hall,
two young men appeared, the one carry
ing lot of blankets and the other large
bundle Of dry corn fodder AT a signal
from our host they ascended the creak-
ing stairs, the balusters threatening to
topple over at every step. We followed
to a room on the second floor from which
the furniture had been removed Here
the fodder and blankets were arranged
into comfortable bed. and Abe, point
ing to it, said alphabetically:
1T amt jes' de ting fo' Yankee gem
men, but it's de best we hez got An III
so much as yeh does it to one OBJ desc 50
likewise to me.
Thoroughly exhausted, pulled off my
leaky boots and lay down at once; but,
with more caution, Bell examined the
upper floor and made note Of all the
avenues of retreat, so that we might be
able to get out in hurry if occasion re-
quired
1t was about half past in the morn
ing when we lay down; it was about
in the afternoon when we were aroused
by the opening Of the door and the
stamping Of heavy feet on the floor
T DtdA tlll5 UPS We octW q Ohh- DietIA man
at the foot Of our bed. his big lips
trembling and his face actually gray
with excitement
'Maussesl" he gasped, 'Abes done
sent me to git yeh ont, fo' de sarchers
hez GOMEZ
"Searchers~ we exclaimed. as we
leaped up and pulled on our boots.
Eyes, sab; dars bout ten. an dey've
come from Sylvania, and lows dey're
a-gwine to camp var all night. replied
the boy.
"But what are they searching forY"
asked.
Dunno, sab, he said
''But what did Abe tell you to do with
uss"
<ze got 10 take yous down to de ole
G, saoCze an git yous into dc loft Dar
an. no tine to lose
! The boy rolled up the blankets, threw
them over his sAoIls.s, and motioned
for us to follow. which w did. with our
hearts beating faster than our feet could
move. He led us through back door
and down through garden head high
with weeds Back Of this garden there
was strip Of stately timber, and keep
+ ing in this shelter our guide conducted
Us To an old Clubhouse on the edge Of one
Of those rutted aud waterwashed fields
so peculiar to southern plantations. The
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