Northern Wisconsin advertiser. [volume] (Wabeno, Wis.) 1898-1925, 1900-03-22

| salu mat JEFFERSON Davis had been In town
How do you knew it was jeff Davis7 What
makes You think sol"
Well" he said, all the gentlemen called
him President Davis and he had his wife
with him, and she was called Mrs. Davis"
He said they had come over the river on
them, and some fine saddle horses led Behind
the wagon in which President Davis and his
! wife rode.
He further said that they were going to dine
with Judge Rose lone of the gentlemen who
had been so persistent in urging me to sp,nd
the night at his housed, but before they could
| get the dinner ready, they heard something that
made the party leave in a hurry, going south on
! the river road. There was another large party,
he said, that did moi. come over the river. |
| questioned him closely, and his answers an
peared straight but was fearful of trick to
send me off on some side track / said to Bill.
F" Do you think he is telling me the truth, and
and that ought to believe him2"
Sartin shoor, kurnel You kin b'lieye him,
| he's tellin' We Gods troof!"
| 1t will be seen that if Bill had not been with
me, we would have known nothing of Davis
having crossed our track: we should have gone
! the next morning toward Savannah, and Davis
would in all probability have escaped capture,
| and got away into Cuba, in company with
Judah I. Benjamin and others, or across the
| Mississippi to Kirby Smith.
| To get little more information. called up a
| couple of men, and going down to the ferry in.
terviewed the ferryman as to who be had
| brought over the river that day, but could get
nothing out of him, He was either too stupid.
| UT obSbindtt 10 give us any lntOrnA-
ton of Importance. 1 have always been soTrS
that we did not throw the old scamp into the
/ river as my sergeant wanted me TO do.'
| As soon as we got back to the bivouac, called
up the men to saddle for march. Lieutenant
| Hewitt, with thirty men, had been left back at
some crossroads and had not yet come up so,
detailing Lieutenant Lane with forty-fve men,
| to remain at Dublin ami scout from there M
| and down the river, /, with the rest (seventy-
! five mem started south in the direction the
! Davis party was reported to have taken
l. 1t dark, and the roads the nine
I woods were only trails We soon became con.
fused, and after wandering around for some
| time, found ourselves coming into Dublin again,
Picking our road once more, and daylight com
ing May 81, we struck out the river road at
| a rapid gait. Five miles out we came tn Turkey
| creek, where We found the bridge torn up
| While this was being repaired, | strolled up to
| a log house near by, and questioned the woman
whom found there, in regard to the party who
large party had passed. but she did not know
who they were. Two of the gentlemen had been
in her house and drunk some milk, and she
| showed me little scrap of paper which she
said they had dropped. saw it was piece Of
Richmond newspaper, of recent date.
\ bright little girl standing by, said she had
heard one gentleman call the other "Colone
Harrison, and the other was addressed as MIR
President. Upon my lnquili ing as to how the,
We're dressed, she said they were almost a,
handsomely dressed as was, but their coat
we're not alike" Pointing to my shoulder
straps enquired i they had such things OF
their coats; she replied no but one of them haC
the other had PLAIN clothes. The child's de
scription convinced me that one was an office
of high rank, and the other Jefferson Davis
So convinced was that we were at last reall'
on the track of Davis, that wrote a dispatcl
and started courier with it to Gen. Wilson
but the man was captured by some confederates
taken into the woods robbed of his horse ant
equipments and left to make his way to Macoi
on foot - which he did, but not until after M
| return there.
The bridge being repaired, we again pushed
on through the pine woods. The wagon track
could now be plainly seen, but it soon com
menced to rain very hard, and the tracks W,
FAD followed were now obliterated. We wer
in the great pine woods of the south, the sol
nothing but white sand, scarcely an inhabitan
to be found, and soon we lost all track of the par
ty ahead but still we pushed blindly on / sen
parties circling around to find the road. bu
they were unsuccessful. However, they founC
! a hOrseman, and brought him to me In reul,
to my.questions, he said he knew nothing of an,
party, that he was only poor citizen hunting
some lost sheep noticed that he riding
fine horse. / told him that | would take hi
horse, and he could hunt his sheep on foot Al
this he began to plead earnestly. | told him t.
quit lying, to tell me where the wagons wer,
that had been somewhere near there the even
ing before, and would let him go with hi
horse. He then confessed he did know wher,
the party had camped over night but it wai
eleven miles away and in another direction en-
| tirely from that in which we were headed.
Guide us there" said and you shall have
Your horse; otherwise you go home on foot"
He took us in westerly direction, to where
the Davis party had been IN camp. but the,
were gone Accordance to promise, / dismissed
the guide and he left in a hurry. We found
here poor plantation and a little forage, which
we appropriated from the owner. ! inquired
where the wagon party had gone; he did not
know, though he thought they had crossed Gum
swamp but the rains had 80 raised the water
that il would be difficult for us to get through
Get your horse, | said, and guide us
through to the other side. and will 60
otherwise we shall stay and eat you out OF
house aud home"
He then quickly mounted and led the way
through the swamp, where the water for miles
was up to the saddles. Dismissing this guide, we
pushed on through the dense woods, over
fairly-plain track, until darkness compelled us
to halt for the night: during which there came
up terrible storm of wind, rain, thunder, and
lightning. As If to add 10 orr discomfort, scv.
eral great trees came down with a crash in our
vicinity, but onr WEAKNESS was such that we
were disturbed but for moment.
May 9, as soon as 1t was light enough to see
| we pushed on IN southeast direction, until we
struck the Ochmnlgee, the same river we had
before crossed at Macon. Continuing down
this stream some distance, we came to ferry
In our haste to get over the boat was damaged
| so that only half load of horses could be taken
over at "A time This delayed us a couple OF
hours, when we pushed on few miles to a lit
tie town called Abbeville.
By inquiring we learned that party with
wagons had passed through the town during
the night, and that they had gone towards Ir
winsville. Hating to feod our horses. we
started ON the road thitber, but just as we were
moving out we four soldiers in United
States uniform, coming down the road from the
north They informed me that they belonged
to the fourth Michigan cavalry Lieut.. Col.
Benjamin d. PrItchard commanding, and that
the regiment was near at hand.
Sending ON our detachment under Lieutenant
George o. Clinton, | rode, accompanied by my
orderly James Aplin.-to meet Colonel Prit.
chard. After introducing myself, inquired il
he had any news of Davis He said he had not,
but that he had been ordered with his regiment
to Abbeville, to patrol the river and prevent
Davis from crossing. He bad left Macon since
had. but up to that time had heard nothing OF
the fugitive. As his errand was the same a.
mine, thought il my duty TO give him all the
| information in my possession, in regard to the
movements OF the latter. He inquired il
needed any more men 1 said did not, but
asked IL he could spare some rations, as our
party had next to nothing To eat. He said they
had marched suddenly. and had nothing Bid
ding him goodbye my orderly and | left, and
pushing on overlook our party. We shortly
came to the place where the Davis party had
lunched. They had left so recently, that their
fires were still burning.
We continued 10 march on until dark when,
coming TO a swale where there was water and
little grass, we halted to rest and Craze our
horses. All we had for rations was a life Of
damaged corn meal. We lay down 70 rest for a
time, but before the break Of day MAY 10 were
/ again in the saddle At this time felt conf.
dent that we were in close proximity to the
come upon them in the night. expected that
the fugitives would camp on the other side OF
the river. ahead OF us, and / reasoned that II
We attempted TO cross the ford in the dark,
Davis would take the alarm and escape.
| Putting forward an advance guard OF ser.
/, geart Cfecr-r Hgsssy, aai Ok I.aa, Will IL
structions to keep little ahead, and maintain
| sharp lookout, We moved on. We had made
but mile or so. when our advance guard were
| suddenly fired upon by what ] Judged TO be