Idaho news. (Blackfoot, Idaho) 1887-1891, 1891-02-21
STORY OF THE CIVIL WAR.

tanned name, ana lame, ana fortune.
He didn't remember me, and Pm
glad he didn't. He has done some
remarkable work, and he has ''sue-
ceeded." Yesterday Ihad theehance
of shaking hands with the great
man.
did not shake hands with him;
the fact is, couldn't. There are
some people you can't shake hands
with, you know; there are some sins
impossible to forgive, some crimes so
base that neither time norrepentance
can ever blot them out. WhenI saw
his photographs l said to myself,
I've seen that face before somewhere;
and when saw him it all came back
to me.
1t was in 1856. / am not going
to give you the exact year. l had
shipped as an able-bodied seaman
on board the (let us say Columbia.
The Columbia was a man-oi-war, and
belonged to the federal navy. We
(the federalsl had almost wiped out
the so-called Confederate navy, but
there were one or two bloekade-run-
ners that still bothered us. Among
them was that notorious vessel the
Harbinger, and hitherto the Har-
binger had succeeded in showing the
ships of the federal fleet a clean pair
OF heels. She had actually shot
across our bows in thick fog into
which she had Disappeared and we
fired three hurried shots at her with
our great Dahlgren gun, one of
which carried away her funnel.
called her a blockade-runner Just
now. but we looked upon her as lit
tie better than a pirate She began
as a blockade-runner, but whenever
she came across an unarmed United
States vessel she sunk or burned her,
taking the crews prisoners, and then
showing them ashore in uncomforta-
BILE places. We knew that she was
lying in. hiding in one of the numer-
Gus bayous OF the western coast Of
Florida, and it had been reported that
her engines had broken down. OF
course, il we met her at sea naval
duel would take place, and either the
Columbia or the Harbinger would
have togo to the bottom. We knew
Perfectly we'll that Admiral Sykes.
as he called himself. of the Conleder-
ate navy would never surrender.
Couldn't, you see, because at least
a third of his crew consisted of de-
serters from the federal army or
navy, and had price upon their
heads, and as my American ship
mates put it, chad just got to be
hanged
We had searched inlet after inlet;
the men were worn out with recon.
noitering in boats and rowing for
hours in the glowing sun, in the
muddy inlets and silent bayous
which were badly marked in the
charts, and where the soundings
could not be depended on. One-third
of the crew was down with fever, and
deaths occurred nearly every day
but we knew that the Harbinger had
to be taken. 1--we could only fluid
her. and if her engines were really
broken down, she would fall a com
paratively easy prey Our chief feal
was that she might be able to repair
damages and slip out past US under
cover of thick night, and recon-
mence her depredations.
We had three weeks of it. The
night was thickish, and / was or
duty on the maintop crOsstrees. Not
sound broke the stiffness of til,
night. Ever and anon the light o
the moon would break forth fitfully
only to disappear again between
the driving clouds. There was {
sort of Scotch mist OF rain which
wetted one to the bone and mad,
me and the companion of my watct
There were n couple of us on tn,
crosstrees) actually suffer from the
cold though it wns summer night
''Pard, said my shipmate to me
whats that"
We could see an indistinct some
thing moving slowly through thu
mist toward the Columbia; we knew
it was boat Of some sort, BY tn,
slight phosphorescent trail it lett up
on the calm water; we guessed i
must be canoe, for the strokei
were not synchronous. | hurried
down and reported to the officer O
the watch. When we had first sighter
the canoe it must have been some hal
a mile of, and need hardly sa,
that it was absolutely invisible from
the deck. But the officer Of tn
watch came up into the top, and /
was plain enough that the advanc
ing object was a canoe padded by
single man; and then the officer @
the watch raised rife to his shouI
der and let fly over the mans head
he didn't mean to hit him, youknov
only to irighten him.
"For Gods sake don't shoot?