The Portland daily press., 1892-06-08

Down TO Knoxville" said the SER
geant.
'And what II you uns do with me
alter that?"
''Try you for murder and hang you at
wons't," said the sergeant.
This information made no change in
the face or bearing of the prisoner; in
deed, he laughed and his white teeth
CLEANED like those of tiger.
One week after this Jack Hurd was
thrown into the jail at Knoxville, which
was packed with TRAITORS" as the Union
prisoners were called. The Knoxville
! papers gave long accounts of the murder
of Captain Field and the gallant cap
ture Of the notorious Desperate" The
news was supplemented by the statement
that Jack Hurd would at once be tried
by a court martial, and, as there was no
doubt of his guilt, his death by hanging
would follow.
Mrs. Hurd had learned of her sons
capture, and the day following his ar
rival at the Knoxville Jail she was there,
but the authorities would not permit her
to see her son. She did, however, find
Pike, who was then attached to battery
stationed in the city.
Jack wasn't to blame" said Mrs.
Hurd to her Confederate son. ssThey
was fo' carryin him off by force and they
drawed their weapons, and thar was him
with the ak he had been chopin with
in his hands, He maynt a. meant to kill,
but hit was all SO student no one didn't
have time to think, and now Pike they
say ez how they'll hang yer brother, my
Jack, jist COZ he dared to be man.
Can't you uns help?'
by the Great Eternal?" Kissed Pike;
"ef SO be they hangs Jack, then I'll give
em the same kind of job on me. But
let we uns wait and see what thar sot to
do. They can't expect me to stand by
and not do id thing"
The next morning drumhead court
was convened in the court house. Tt
was not legal, for Jack Hurd was not
soldier, nor was it necessary, for the
members had already made up their
minds to make an example of the pris-
oner, an example that would strike ter
ror to the hearts Of the Union men, who
were far more numerous than the south
ern sympathizers in East Tennessee. The
next morning Jack Hurd, with hand
cuffs on his wrists and strong guard
about him, was marched into the room
where the court, composed of uniformed
! officers, was assembled.
AS soon as Jack was seated, woman
broke through the line of guards, and
rushing up she threw her arms about
him and called out:
my son! my sonl I'll die with yo' or
for yo'w
The officers were for putting the poor
heartbroken woman out, but they were
! changed by the appearance of Pike Hurd,
who advanced, and laying his hand on
his mothers shoulder said, with fierce
| oath:
/ "This woman is my mother and I'm
a Confedrit sojer. Let any man dar to
lay his hand on her, and by Cd I'll
strike him dead har or outsider
The officers whispered together, and
they decided to let Mrs. Hurd remain,
but Pike was excluded from the court.
The only witness for the prosecution
was the man who was present when
Captain Field was killed. He told his
story forcibly and with great attention
to effective detail. The finding of the
court was q foregone conclusion, as was
the sentence, but as a matter of form
| Jack was asked if he had any evidence
| to offer in his own behalf.
''Yesr' shrieked the mother. "Im his
evidence, and you uns haz got to har
mel"
The officers whispered together and
decided to let her speak. No oath was
administered, nor was there any attempt
to cross question her after she had con-
cluded.
With an awful if not convincing ear
nestness, for she felt that she was fight
ing for the life of her firstborn, Mrs.
Hurd told the story from beginning to
end. With much force she dwelt on the
fact that she was widow, and that one
of her sons had already enlisted in the
Confederate army. ''Jack Hurd would
a. been no son Of mine if he let them
sojers tote him off-tote him off from
his home and my home without fight.
He hit for his liberty, fo' thar amt no
coward blood in his veins. His heart
was sot onto the Union, but fo' my sake
and the sisters sake he allowed to stay
home; so let him go back with me and
thar won't be no noah trouble from Jack
Hurd, eff SO be you uns stay away. Amt
that fa'r?"
Jack told his own story, and he ended
by asking the officers if each of them
would not have done as he did under the
same circumstances.
They consulted again. Then the presi-
dent of the court said that Jack Hurd, Of
Campbell county, Tennessee, was found
guilty as charged, and that in accord
ance with this verdict the court had de-
cided that he be hanged before high
noon Of the morrow in the jailyard in
the city of Knoxville. And the poor
woman cried out when she heard the
sentence and threw her arms about her
son.
| CHAPTER II.