The National tribune. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1877-1917, 1901-09-05

perform The prisoners captured there
| were loaded onto three boats, and under
the convoy of a gunboat were sent North,
and five companies of our regiment were
detailed for that duty and we were Of
this detail. We were to act as guards for
one boat
There were 200 prisoners on our boat
and 800 guards. There was only COM
Portable room for about 1000. so you
know we were packed as tight as "sar-
dimes in a box" / think from the time
we left Arkansas Post until we arrived
at Camp Butler we were about 40 days
on the route.
The first grapevine was that our
duty would cease at the mouth of the Ar
kansas River; next, that we were destined
for Memphis; next, for st. Louis, then
Camp Butler, Ill. (six miles east of Spring
field. Until we reached st. Louis the
prisoners were in companies and regl-
ments, and all their officers, including the
ccmmandant of the post, Gen. Churchill.
At Memphis | was detailed as guard
for Gen. Churchill, to go ashore to have
a consultation with some friend, as | sup
posed, ON family matters. l did not wish
to let my man get away, nor did l desire
to make my presence more offensive tnan
was necessary. l said so much to the
General, and intimated | would shoot II
occasion required, but if he would give me
| his word of honor | would keep far
enough away not to hear what he might
desire to say to his friend. He seemed
to appreciate my courtesy In the matter,
and when the conference was over, like
the gentleman he was, returned on board
the boat.
At Memphis a funny incident occurred.
An old apple-woman came down to the
| landing, but was refused admission on
board. | think she had apples, nearly
half bushe. Then, standing about two
rods from the boat, she commenced throw
ing apples over to the boys, and such
scrambe-guards and prisoners alike
and such yelling and cheering. This she
kept up till the last apple was thrown,
| and | don't believe one went into the
river. OF course, this was a free-will Of
| fering. 1t seemed to be as much fun for
her as it was for the boys, prisoners and
all.
During the trip I had a great many
| conversations with those troops. They
were from Texas and Arkansas, and we
often discussed the conditions of the war.
| They had theory that the disturbing ele-
ment was the New England States and
New York and Pennsylvania, and seemed
to think Illinois ought to join the South
ern Confederacy. | used to reply that
Secession was like cutting the body in
two, and destroying both the head and
| the feet.
A REBEL STAKEHOLDER.
| There was one felow-he was nom
| commissioned officer, | think-that used
to regale the boys with long letters he
| had from some one his partner, | think,
and tell us about his pack of hounds and
| the lively chases after runaway negroes
| in the mountains, and end up with the
proper way TO educate a hound, so as to
| be good at trailing negroes. Before we
| entered the service many of us were of
the opinion that these tales of hunting
human beings with a pack of hounds like
! you would a deer or wolf were over
drawn, but this fellow convinced US all
| that the picture was not overdrawn.
There was little of Importance worthy
| to relate, except our boat ran in shore
to allow a rebel party to bury four of the
prisoners that died on the way up. CTheIr
| regimental doctor was along, and while
our Surgeon furnished the medicine he
treated them.) | happened to be sent out
to guard the detail. The service was
about in the same line as l had seen in
our own, j. e., pit about six feet long,
and wide enough to contain four bodies,
was dug. Then they were wrapped in
their blankets, placed in the pit, and the
earth filed in on the body, without board,
coffin or anything else. While here on
this duty neighboring planter rode up,
made inquiry as to the names, regiment
and rank of the deceased, and promised
to see that the bodies We're removed to
q more suitable cemetery. lie seemed to
be a planter in good circumstances, about
80 years of age, l suppose, was rebel in
sympathy, if not q member of the rebel
army. But as my only duty was to see
that none OF the detail of rebel prison
ers got away, | did not feel it duty to
interfere or prevent communication be-
tween them. Indeed, / think our feeling
was that we were in honor bound to treat
those prisoners with all the courtesy and
kindness possible, with a proper regard
for the safety of our charge. Indeed, any
thing like the details of Andersonyille
would have been something at which our
sense of honor would have revolted. l
doubt if any military discipline could have
enforced such treatment from us; but our
officers seemed to share the same feeling
as did we.
GUARDING PRISONERS AT BLOODY ISLAND.
At st. Louis we stopped down below
the city three or four miles, at an unin-
habited island. As | recall it, it contained
about 200 acres, and was about mile
in width, about in the center of the Mis-
sissippi River. Our information was that
it received the designation Bloody Isl
and" it being a favorte resort for
duelling purposes by the 'bloods" of st.
Louis. Perhaps the question OF whether
it belonged to Illinois or Missouri may
have made it safe resort. 1t was over
grown with pretty thick growth of cot
tonwood, which on the Mississippi is
everywhere present. These were from
four to 80 inches in diameter.
Here every day the prisoners under
guard were allowed to go ashore; that is,
we formed picket line as far around as
we could, and they had the privilege of
all the ground between the lines and the
boat. At dusk they were again put on
board the boat, and next day the same
process again. This continuous duty was
pretty trying on us.
Here the commissioned officers were
separated, and, as | learn, taken to John
son Island. Well, one sleety, murky even
ing our old boat got up stream to Alton.
Here we lay until morning, and then we
and our charge Qhe prisoners were load
ed into boX-cars and our next stopping
place was Camp Butler, six miles east OF
Springfield, Ill. | doubt if any troops did
service more trying to body and soul than
was that from the time we went aboard
that river steamer at Memphis in Deem
Der, 1862, until we landed in Camp But
Ter, about March /, 1868. 1t may be a
criticism that by my description of guard
duty ii was not very rigid. Well, not one
of the 2,T00 prisoners made his escape
from US.
Bushwhacking OF Gen. Bob McCook
EDITOR NATIONAL TRIBUNE: The bush
L