Rock Island Argus. (Rock Island, Ill.) 1893-1920, 1906-03-20
DAILY SHORT STORY
A PROMISE REDEEMED.
[Original.l

| fined as prisoner in Libby prison. ana
ten years after being discharged from
the United States service l was sud
denly seized with desire to go south
and have look at it. AS was start
| ing an uncle of mine insisted on Civ
| ing me letter to an old friend of his,
| Samuel POrcher, n Richmond merchant.
AS soon as l arrived in the former
Confederate capital / went down to
the river bank and, standing before
| the old tobacco warehouse that had
been my prison, looked up at 1t with
very singular feelings. There on the
| street level was the door out of which
had passed In broad daylight at the
imminent risk of my life and began
! Journey of intolerable suffering down
| the James river. AS / stood in 1874
| looking on the scene of my adventure
| of 1864 l scarcely realized that l was
a free man, permitted to come and go
| as l liked. Not uniform was to be
seen, business had taken the place of
war.
| This is how 1 came to make an at
tempt at escape: One of the prisoners
mad secured Il loaded revolver, how l
Joined from one of the guards when he
was asleep or drunk or who had left it
carelessly where it could be bounced
| upon. 1t was n dangerous article for
| n prisoner to have. and ii was passed
| from one to another till it came to me.
| L was desperate, and, hiding it under
my shirt, buttoned my ragged coat
around it, hoping that / might find
! chance to use it in some desperate
move for freedom.
l was confined on the ground floor.
At times the door would be left open,
a guard pacing back and forth on the
pavement before it. At times l would
make bold to go to the door and look
out. usually to be ordered back. There
was one of the sentries whom l espe-
cially noticed. He was what l then
called an old man of about forty-five
and was doubtless Il citizen relieving
regular troops at guarding prisoners.
One day at noon l went to the door
and stood looking out. Everybody was
at dinner, and l could see no soldier
except the Oldish sentinel, who | no
ticed was thinking about something
besides his guard duty. 1t was Il crazy
thing to do, but my life as 4 prisoner
was Il burden to me. I watched the
sentinel till he turned to walk with his
back to me. then like flash slipped
out the door and ran like n deer to the
corner where Il street sloped down TO
the river AS l turned a ball came
whizzing past me, and 1 knew 1 had
been discovered. The sentinel chased
me, and, although was much younger
4l,o,, 10 4 ,nI H.. tir,n
ment He caught up with me just as
1 was getting behind pile of lumber.
1 turned and shot him with my revolv-
er. Darling on, l saw a cellar Win
dow open and crawled i'll. SearcherS
passed my hiding place dozen times
without thinking to enter, and when it
was dark crawled out, lodged along
down the river bank, found n boat and
floated on the bosom of the historic
James. How 1 reached Old Point Com
fort and our ships would make Il story
of itself.
After inspecting Libby 1 presented
my letter of introduction to Mr..
Porcher. Now, there would be moth
ing in this story except the hair
breadth escape, of which there We're
thousands in that war. had not my
host had pretty daughter ten years
my Junior, between whom and me
there Sprang case of love at first
sight. l stayed in Richmond n long
while, pretending to have business
there, all the while attempting to
smooth away Mr.. Porcher's prejudice
against me as having been Il Union
soldier. When at last 1 thought ! had
him in n more Modified condition |
ventured to ask him for his daughters
hand. He heard me through with low
ering brow, then said:
81 will give my consent on one con-
dition. There is a man probably living
whom 1 wish to kill-a miserable dirty
little Yankee who was a prisoner in
Libby in 1864. 1 was a member of
the home guard and a sentinel at the
prison when one day the impudent boy
walked out of the door and ran away.
1 followed him. He not only gave me
q wound in the shoulder from which l
have suffered ever since, but l was
dropped from the guard in derision."
He was going on, getting more and
more excited as he proceeded, when
his daughter came in anXiousiy and
stopped him. He ended by making it
condition of his consent to our union |
that / would promise to scour the |
north for that dirty little mudsill'' |
and give him q chance to shoot him.
1 listened to this with establishment. |
There had been something familiar |
about Mr.. Porcher's face and figure. |
and could not get over the idea that |
1 had seen his somewhere. AS for me, |
7 had grown whiSkerS and weighed |
fifty pounds more than when / was |
prisoner. 1 was too much disconcert- |
ed to reply at once, but finally pulling |
myself together said:
''Mr. Porcher, 1 promise you solemn
Iy that within six months after my
marriage with your daughter l will
produce the dirty little Yankee you
refer to. have heard of this case and