The Union times. [volume] (Union, S.C.) 1894-1918, 1904-12-09


Uncle Sam of any further ex-
penSe on my account. | had been
engaged in two unsuccessful at
tempts to tunnel out, and | knew
a negro too well to trust him a
brlbe, for three comrades that /
knew were shot and killed by the
negro sentlnels at night after the
villains had accepted cash bribes,
so | decided ! would make the
attempt disguised as Yankee.
Every morning after roll call a
detail or six prisoners from each
barrack was made to carry out
the slop barrels through a little
side gate, escorted by a Yankee
empty the barrels in the
river, and return TO the prison.
MyNdea was, disguised in Yam
kee uniform, with citizens
suit underneath, to take charge
of a detail, march out with it,
discard my uniform as soon as
possible when safely outside, and
in citizens clothes the greatest
danger would be past. The
prison was constantly searched
for contraband articles, especially
Yankee clothes. / had managed
to keep concealed Yankee
blouse and cap, but had no pants,
no pistol, and no scabbard, These
last Were as necessary as the
pants, for the guards were re-
quigsd to wear pis tolls when they Z
came in pris0<a I hadsof a YAM
kee best VIXEN captufed, which
had not been taken from me,
and the pistol and scabbard I
soon provided. A thick piece Of
pine board furnished the material
out of which | whitfield a good
imitation handle of pistol,
which | stained with ink and
glazed over with a lead pencil to
give it the appearance of steel.
The scabbard + made from the
knee flaps of my cavalry boots, a
fine Yankee pair that my best
girl had smuggled out of Helena,
Ark, for me under her hoop
skirt just before our fight there;
but it was a month later before |
secured the pants. | was stand
ing one morning near the main
entrance when a tWo-horse
wagon, loaded with coal and
driven by a green-looking Dutch
man, came in. The drivers big
blue Yankee overcoat was lying
back on the coal, and | deter
mined to have it. While he was
fumbling in his pockets to find
the ticket showing the number
of barrack that had made requi-
sition for the fuel, | advanced
and roughly asked what had de-
tained him, that | had been wait
ing an hour for the coal; taking
his ticket and signing my SCARCE
ants name to it, | mounted the
wagon and directed him to my
barrack. number twenty-four,
on the far side of the prison.
Throwing the coat on the wheel
horse as | jumped down, | bade
him wait and | would have his
wagon unloaded. went in, in
formed my sergeant, John Smith
John Rodgers was his real
name, but he belonged to QUAINT
rells command, and had this
been known his life would not
have been worth a days rations
of my intentions, and asked
that he send out a detail to un-
load the coal. | then posted two
or three of my friends, and, while
the men were unloading the
wagon, they were attracting the
drivers attention on the far side
from me by urging him to buy
trinkets they had made out of
shell, bone, etc. Unobserved |
slipped the coat under my over
coat, carried it into my barrack,
lifted up a loose plank in the
floor, dropped it underneath, and
went back to watch develop
ments. Of course the Dutchman
missed his coat when he started
to drive away, and appealed to
the sergeant, who called up the
men; all declared there was no
coat on the wagon-in truth,
they had not noticed it. Then