The Hot Springs star. (Hot Spings [Hot Springs], Dakota [Dakota Territory, i.e. S.D.]) 1886-189?, 1892-01-22
FOOLED BY MossX..

FOOLED eY MossN.
fho con3ederaa.ts Cue iilla Got the rsdsrsi
Password and Made Raid.
'sThe man with the coolest iiervS 1
ever met" said Colonel A. e. Seiferts;
who was in q reminiscent mood, twas
Colonel John s. Mosby. I was q high
private at Harper's Ferry when that
place was captured by Stonewal1 Jack
son in 1862. After waiting for some time
for our exc !ange we were ordered down
to Fairfax Court House, Va, where We
were on the lookout for Mosby.
"One. cold, clear night in February,
1853, was on picket duty on the War
renton road. I had post two. was
walking my post almost on. the double
quick, trying to keep warm, when ]
heard troop Of cavalry coming down
the Warrenton road at a quick trot.
! They were stopped by the man on post
one all right, and then came down on my
post. When they came close enough to
me halted them.
"'Friends with the counterign; was
the answer to my challehge;
".One man dis,nount and advance
with the countersign,' wasmy next eom-
mand. >,
IA we'll dressed officer dismounted
and advanced to the point Of my bayo-
net and gave the countersign jamaica
"Countersign correct I shouted:
Pass on !.
! "There were about three hundred Of
them: u motley crew in appearance, but
they were IL jolly lot, singing, talking
and laughing. They passed on, and in
due time ! was relieved and soon was
sound asleep. ).
early the next morning the seargent
cf the guard reused me up and told me
/ 1 was w;snt.d at headquarters. IN
charge of an orderly ! went. When !
got there the man who was on post one
vas ahead of me. He was ushered into
the presence Of General Alexander
Hayes, our commanding officer, and
Wien he came out went in.
"'You had post two ut - lastn nightr
demanded the general.
"sI had, SIR
"tTell mo about the troop Of cavalry
that passed your post
81 told him what had happened. E,
"'Wcll,' he said grimly, you did it,
and he dismissed me.
81 discovered pretty soon that the men
had passed were Mosby's command,
with Mostly at their head. They had
ridden through tho entire camp, taken
the tent of one of the general officers,
mounted it on mule and escaped with
it to the Confederate lines.
Glow did he get the password? We
found out that afterward. At one Of
the outposts was the rawest kind of a
raw recruit. While he was on picket.
duty man dressed in a captains uni-
form, with the red sash Of the officer of
the day across his breast, approached
hun. He challenged and The, ofacer re-
spondel.
=. Officer of the day with the counter
sign.'
"'Advance and givo the countersign.'
"The officer advanced and gave word
which was not the correct ono.
"'That's not right said the sentinel,
and yon can't pass
"After considerable wrangling, the.
,hcer insisted that his word was right,
he exclaimed angrily, what word have
you got:' The man said, sThe sergeant
Of the guard gave me the word, "Ja-.
maica." and nobody can pass without it,
"The officer was no. other than Mosby
himself. He had all he wanted, and,
Whiting for night, got his men together
and made the successful raid. /;
"For cool nerve it beat anything t
ever heard of."-New York Herald.