The Portland daily press., 1895-08-17

would not have worked in his favor.
General Pemberton was at this time
III command Of Vicksburg, willis to the
east, at jackson and Brandon and scat
tered along Pearl river, was the army,
under General Joe Johnston, that was to
cooperate with him against Grant.
though the southern generals did not
believe till the truth was forced on them
that General Grants objective point
was Vioksburg. They could not imagine
that the Union general would be SO
audaclous as to begin a campaign with
out well established base of supplies,
and where crushing defeat would
mean the inevitable annihilation of his
army. They believed, up to the very
hour that Grant ferried his men over the
Mississippi and advanced on Port Glib
son, that his purpose was to join Gen
eral Banks, then advancing on Port
Hudson.
After Coleman had freed himself
from the sWamps Of the Yazoo, he
found himself in country swarming
with southern troopers under General
Adams. Every plantation house was
hospital, and the negroes, more stupid
on these large plantations than in any
other part of the south, had only the
vaguest notion of their own relations to
the war, and so could not be depended
on for help But obstacles like these
served only to urge Coleman on to great
er effort
Tt should be said that, like all per-
sons in the secret service OF the Union
armies whose duties led them within
the Confederate lines, Coleman was
we'll supplied with southern money.
This enabled him to purchase food, as
we'll as to secure the silence of the ne
groes whose cabins he was forced to
visit in the nighttime. He slept in the
jungle depths and always at night. He
pushed on during the day, keeping away
from the roads and trails and taking
care that he was not observed.
One week after leaving Grants army
on the Mississippi, Coleman struck the
railroad, and SO the telegraph lines,
not far from Big Black bridge, where a
battle was fought few days afterward
which resulted i'll the permanent sepa-
ration of Pemberton and Johnston, and
the cooping up of the latter in Vicks-
burg Coleman reached the track about
an hour before sunset, and he concealed
himself in the woods near by, and SO
close that he could see the men on the
trains that went flying past.
| To the west and not more than mile
| 0NQu (fn1nTlaan sow &c t,o-
came dark, the oampfres of a brigade
of Pemberton's command This from
the first of his expedition had been his
objective point, and when about 8
O'Clock train had gone eastward along
the single track, he put on his 'climb-
ers' and assembled a pole that was con-
cealed above by the dropping branches of
live oak. Perohed on crosspiece, he
had just made his connections and was
bending over the ticker, when he was
startled by hearing voices that seemed
to come FROM the foot of the pole say
he was startled, but perhaps that is
too strong term to apply to the feel
ings of man who never permitted him
self to be eleted or frightened. The sit
nation was alarming, but I think it can
be stated with certainty that the man s
heart did not beat faster for the danger,
and that he did not lose his head for
the fraction of second.
Quicker than the most fluent tongue
could desorib he it Coleman detached his
| instrument and bent to listen.
"Thar. il stopped, said one of the
nen, whose aim ngure on tEs crack BE-
low was revealed by the half moon.
"It amt never begun. 1t was one of
them char loousts," said another man.
'Iocusts be hanged!" responded the
first speaker. "Ain't got ears?''
ssYes, and SO hez mule,'' was the
reply.
After waiting for long five minutes
for repetition of the sound the two
men went down the track, and immedi-
ately after them came party on a hand
Car.
Coleman again attached his instru-
ment and was not surprised to find that
both jackson and Vicksburg were de-
manding to know what was up. Com
munication having been reapored, he
read for fully two hours the messages
that went back and forth. He learned
that Grand gulf had been abandoned,
and that the Yankees were certainly ad-
vancing on jackson. He further discov-
cred what subsequently, became well
known in both armies, and that is that
Johnston and Pemberton were not work
ing in harmony. The former was strong
in the belief that Vioksburg should be
abandoned and the two armies united to
operate against Grant, and the latter
was equally determined to cling to the
defenses that were then spoken of in the
south as ''the Gibraltar of the Missis-
sippi.'
1t was simply impossible for Coleman
to write down the messages that went
back and forth, nor was this necessary,
for in addition to his other brilliant
mental parts he had a phenomenal mem
ory. About 10 o'clock the telegraphing
died out OR was confined to the train
dispatchers at jackson and Vioksburg.
By this time Coleman was in the posses
1