Saint Mary's beacon. [volume] (Leonard Town, Md.) 1867-1983, 1900-04-12

left behind seven months before,
and who had 80 enyied us our good
/ fortune.
found at Fort Delaware many
new faces, and among them officers
from my own regiment, who had
been captured in the lighting going
on almost daily in front of Peters
burg They gave gloomy account
Of the condition Of affairs there.
and expressed 10 doubt bnt that
General Lee would be overwhelmed
as coon as Grant was ready to set
his troops 10 motion.
Was it a wonder. then, that we
felt impatient for the last blow to
be struck, and wished that the end
could come without further blood
shed ? Already the sacrifices had
been too great.
To pass the time, among other
means devised, debating clubs had
been formed from among The many
eloquent men in the prison, and
among the most brilliant OF these
speakers was the late Colonel John
r Fellows, who subsequently won
80 much distinction at the bar and
on the stump ia New York city, to
which he removed soon after the
close OF the war Colonel Fellows
hailed from Arkansas, and was one
Of the most popular Of the young
officers in the prison.
On the 10tk Of April We received
news Of General Lees sarrender.
1t occasioned little surprise or re-
greet, for it had been expected.
GLOW much longer would we have
to remain penned up in ;his placer"
was che question that now agitated
us most; bot we hoped to be treated
as our comrades in the field had
Teen, aud quickly sent TO our homes.
Bat the days slowly passed, and
yet there was no move in that d.
rection.
One day the flag on the fort was
seen % Is 50 half,mast. II had
never been 40 before, and we won
dered whst had happened For
two Or three hours we we're kept in
suspense, when Lieutenant Wolfe
entered the pen and informed us
that President Lincoln had been
assassinated
NEWS or LISCoLN's DEATH.
The news fell like thunderbolt
10 our midst. We were stunned,
utterly dumioundcd, aud for time
could scarcely realize that We heard
correctly, Brave men turned pale
as they thought Of the consequences
Of this madman's act, aud sorrow,
deep sorrow, waa expressed every.
where, for we felt that the people
OF the South had lost their best,
their only friend, as Lincoln was
believed to be kind Of heart and
magnanimous to fault lie could
DO, and would do, for these unhap-
py people what no other man would
dare do in the face Of the bitter
feeling the war had engendered.
When the aame Of Andrew John.
son was mentioned strong men
shuddered, for it was believed moth.
ing good could emanate from him.
As day after day sped by and We
were still in prison, we knew full
we'll the reason for il, and we re-
signed ourselves to our lot.
Fresh fish, as the new arrivals
we're called, we're still pouring in,
aud as long as this continued we
could not expect to be released, al
though many had been in coniins.
ment almost two years.
One morning when emerged
from my quarters observed a
l group OF officers clustered around
a little man, bareheaded, with his
hair combed back. He was q pleas
ant faced young fellow, and, to my
surprise, he wore the uniform of q
major general Of cavalry. Who
could he be, and where did he come
from? approached and lis
tened to his quiet, pleasant voice,
but it was some little while before
7 yentured to inquire the name Of
the new arrival. for he had come in
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