The Hocking sentinel. [volume] (Logan, Ohio) 1871-1906, 1903-03-12
SOLDIERS AT HOME.
THEY TELL SOME INTERESTING
ANECDOTES OF THE WAR.
How the Boys of Both Armies Whiled
Away Life in Camp-Foraxing Ex-
periences, Tiresome Marches-Thril-
ling Scenes on the Battlefield.

L
periences, TiresOme Marches-ThriI-
ling Scenes ON the Battlefield.
| l was captured at Atlanta the day
MCPHERSON fell. In making a charge
with about a dozen comrades we were
surrounded by COnfederates and made
prisoners. We We're taken to two or
three places and finally to Anderson
Vile about the 1st Of October, 1864.
remained there until the latter part
Of November. l was out one evening
with detail Of fellow prisoners. under
q guard. to get wood with which to
cook our scant rations. l had been
subject TO occasional spells Of sick
headache ever since could remember,
and Southern prison life did not help
them. l felt deathly sick at starting.
but managed to stagger along with the
others until We got to the place to get
the wood. Here / gave out entirely.
and l have since been told looked as
II dead. Two Of the guard came up
to ME two or three times. and one of
them gave me punch with his bay
Onet which fortunately did not so very
deep. They then left ME. thinking l
was dead. lay there until some time
in the night. when 1 came to. and af-
ter sitting up little while found the
dizziness gone, but felt terribly weak
and hungry. l was very much confused
at first, but as my head became clearer
! the hope Of escape entered 1t. and
| determined to use my little strength
| In getting as far from Andersonville
| as possible. So l rose to my feet, and
| getting dead stick to lean on, stag
gered into the woods quite distance.
| Then, as the moon was past full, and
| now getting pretty well toward the
West. l determined to guide myself
by 1t to keep from going in circle.
So, going very slowly. kept on until
daybreak. when again dropped, this
time from exhaustion. l lay about
I'm hour, when l again rose and went
slowly on, chewing twigs as / went,
to try to stop the cravings Of hunger,
until l came to creek, not very wide,
but deep, with a strong current. After
| bathing my head and face l followed
Its course a while, to find means to
cross it, for the weather was quite
cool, and l shivered in my rage. While
keeping along the stream l found a
vine with wild grapes that had hung
OH 1t and dried. l commenced eating
them. and while doing so, l heard a
sound that fairly froOze the little blood
left in my veins with terror. 1t was
the distant bay of bloodhound.
They had gone to look for my body,
and not finding any. had realized that
I had given them the slip. and We're
! now in pursuit. All this flashed
through my mind as I stood there,
fairly perspiring In my terror.
Then, with the strength Of despair,
1 rushed to the stream, ran along the
bank until 1 found small dry log
which l managed to get into the water
and sprang in after 1t. 1t seemed to
chill me to the bone; but it was my
only chance of life, and clung to the
log and hoated down stream for a
while; then, when l came to broader
place where the water was not so deep,
[ let it so and worked across to the
other bank. This would have been
easy enough when 1 was myself, but
now l was SO weak that 1t was hard
work. But got there at last and was
about to land in q thick bunch Of
bushes close by the edge when they
were parted by a large bony-looking
man, who must have been over six
feet in height and who seemed to be
all bone and sinew, without pound
Of waste flesh on his frame. started
and gave it up for lost, but he said:
We'll, boy, ! guess you have give them
the slip over at that rebel hell-hOle"
ipOinting in the direction Of the pris-
on pen), land II you want a friend
am yer man; but hurry or the hell
hounds will ketch ye. Go to that log
thar with the end In the water and I'll
git ye on my back and tote ye away
so the hounds I'LL lose yer scent"
did as directed and he took me on his
shoulders and started of at a rapid
pace through the woods. And there
was need Of haste, for the fearful yelps
Of the hounds could be heard coming
perilOusly near. He also gave me his
roat which he had removed to wrap
around my shivering body, and hur-
ried OH while I clung to him, feeling
mOre dead than alive. Now 1t sounds
IKE large tale that one man could
take another on his back and carry
aim any distance, but he was power
tul man and was always small, never
weighing $50 pounds In my life, and
DO not suppose I weighed more than
i2O. Well, we kept on until we mast
have gone five or six miles, he carry
ing me most Of the time. We heard no
more sounds Of pursuit after getting
away from the creek, and my new
friend chuckled and said, They've gin
Sc up, boy; they think yer drowned"
Then he turned up deep hollow and
came to huge rocks, with a kind of
aalf-cavern at one side Of one of them.
Here he stopped, and said: "Hyar's
whar l roost when I'm In these parts.
Now, take of them wet rags and lay
down thar" pOinting to pile Of dry
grass and leaves and n couple Of blan-
kets), land wrap up in the blankets
and sleep, for yer safe" He then gave
me a little food and drink; giving NE
a revolver, he told me If any one hap
pened to find me to shoot, and, taking
another pistol and his gun. he left me,
telling me not to be uneasy, and when
he returned he brought me some cloth
and and some fresh-cooked provisions,
which seemed to put new life into me.
He told me that he had been scouting
around that morning for game, and
had gone to the creek, and hearing the
distant bay of a bloodhound had wait
ed developments, and, having seen me
enter the water, had run down along
the bank to assist If possible. And l
know that II he had not been there L
should never have been able to make
my escape. But to make the story
short, 1 stayed with him over three
weeks, he getting our food cooked
somewhere in the vicinity, never