The Wilmington daily Republican. (Wilmington, Del.) 1890-1902, 1893-09-11
A RIDE FOR LIFE.
HOW ONE OF THE CONFEDERATE CAB
MET OFFICERS ESCAPED.

A Midnight Incident In tho wllds of Geor-
gia When That Whole Section of tho
Country Was Patrolied by Union Soldiers.
An Anxious Farmer.
Down among the piny woods OF south
ern Georgia jefferson Davis was captured.
Why he should ever have been captured in
that lonely land supposing of course that
he really wanted to get away, SURPRISES
understanding. I have ridden over the
ground and have visited that dismal, out
Of the way town of Irwinville Ga, which,
like Waterloo, nameless before, will now
be ever remembered
After leaving South Carolina the com
pany, consisting of Davis, his family. sew
eral members Of the cabinet and an escort
of soldiery, crossed the Savannah river
near the old town Of Washington--by the
way, the first town named fer the father of
his country in the United States. There,
apprehending the approach Of Federal cav
airy, general breakup took place. Davis
continued his way toward the south, still
encountered by considerable wagon train,
until he crossed the Ocmulgee river at Poor
Robin Spring and camped at Asheville.
Thence he started by the early dawn on that
weary journey through the solitudes of the
'wiregrass," made still more solitary by
the war that had depopulated Georgia of
all the men able to bear u nusket, as well
as the boys. sixteen to sixty" was the
last decree OF the conscript act, and only
pale faced and half furnished women and
children remained to gaze in wonder at the
procession.
After the breaking up of the cabinet Gen
eral Breckenridge mounted his horse and
struck out for the Flordian peninsula
Through lonesome byways, where the peo-
pie could not give directions which routeto
pursue after 10 miles because they had new
err been farther, he rode and thus escaped
the Union troops, who were quartered at
different cities and towns across the PENN
sula from Jacksonville to Tampa. 1t was
as wild Il ride as ever a man undertook, but
by avoiding the most populous sections
General Breckenridge finally reached safe
distance below the Gordon of troops lying
in wait for him and other refugees from the
fallen Confederacy,
Worn out, he rode up to a log cabinin.the
dusk of evening and asked il he could get
shelter and refreshment for himself and
his horse and directions how to reach Char
lottes harbor. Although dressed in citi-
GEMS clothes his manners md striking ply
sique melted the curiosity of the squatter
But true to the instincts of that peculiar
race the latter agreed to give the stranger
food and shelter and asked no questions.
staid day and night Mt that hospita-
BILE hut soon after and was the recipient Of
many kindnesses from the squatte.. Said
he, in speaking of the night that he enter
tanned General breckenridge;
II tell you was mighty suspicious about
the Teller / didn't exactly catch on to him
whether he was a Yank or a Confed, but
knew he was one or the other. You see, l
had stole 10 niggers from old man Norman
McDufIie, over at Pensacola, and had run
them down to Tampa and sold them just
about the breaking out of the war. | sold
them for gold several thousand dollars done
up in buckskin bags, regular old Spanish
gold in doubloons, and had the cash buried
under the corner of the smokehouse for
fear some of the strollers might find it,
either running after the Confeds or running
away from the Yankees. You see how sim.
Pile live now lived the same way then
plenty of beef, venison hog meat, milk,
butter, hominy and potatoes. Sometimes
we had bear meat, and sometimes we had
cornbread; not often though, because the
mill was so miles off, and we never fooled
with bears unless they got to Fostering our
hogs. As for biscuits my young ones never
saw one, and they'd have put a coal of fire
on one, just as they'd have done to terra.
pin If they'd found 1t in the road
well, that fellow looked so queer and
suspicious that felt skittish but / give
him the best we had and turned his horse
in the pea patch to help himself We sat
and talked awhile, but I saw he was tired,
30 showed him the bed, and me and my
wife laid down on n pallet on the floor The
more thought OF that man the more l felt
uneasy about my money So, after all were
sound asleep, I slipped out behind the
lf,.bp tn n ,ptNy To
put on my clothes, for fear of being watch.
ed. In a few minutes had it dug up, but
it was so heavy that couldn't hardly tote
it, and stubbed my toe as crawled over
the bars.
Just then up came that blamed old
horse as if Old Nick was after him, and
before knew it he was right on to me, and
then came n chase that don't ever want
to go through with again. The capers of
the horse awoke his MASTER and out he
came-a pistol in each hand. / got right
down on my knees and told him he might
take my money, but for the sake of my
family prayed him to spare my life.
"'Why, you numskull, don't want
your money nor your life. Do you not guess
who amp
"'No'
~ am General breckenridge of the Con
federate cabinet, and all desired was a
little rest Now tell me the most direct
road to Charlottes harbor, and will pay
my bill and get OUT
"'You don't owe me a cent, general. said
!, trembling like u leaf. but for Gods sake
don't tell about my money II you get
caught
~ then caught his horse, saddled him,
filled up his saddlebags with beef and pc
tatoes, showed him the road, and he was
gone half an hour before realized the fact
that had harbored a fugitive and Mt the
same time given refuge to one of the lead.
ers of the Confederacy. New York Post.