Dakota farmers' leader. (Canton, S.D.) 1890-19??, 1907-11-01
LIIE FIELDOF BATTLE
INCIDENTS AND ANECDOTES OF
THE WAR.

rho Veterans of the Rebellion Tell OF
whfxtIIng Bullets, BriSht baS"-
nets, bursting Bombs, Bloody bnt-
ties, Camp Fire, Festive Bugs ETC
Dave Jenkins was just past 16 years
Did when he enlisted in a Federal regl-
nient In his native State, Missouri, as
a volunteer ut the commencement d
the Civil War. Dave was a bright boy,
strong as q horse, quick as a cat, anu
had not an ounce of superfuous aesh
on his bones. He passed unhurt
eArough a number of the severest bat
Hes Of the war, among them Plttspurs
Landing, but at last he was captured
by the ~Confederates and taken to An
Jacksonville, Ga.
When captured he had about n
hundred dollars in United states
Observation-Disclosures his person, ana
some trinkets of different kinds, all OF
which he was allowed to keep; he also
had a big knife with Il blade about i've
inches long. The handle of this knife
was so made that it could be separated
Into two parts, and when SO separated,
the big blade was in one part II IN
the other Part were a fork when
could be opened and shut like q knife
blade. and n German silver spoon
whose bowl was as large as that or an
ordinary tablespoon, and which opened
and closed along the side of the handle
with the hollow part of the spoon next
the knife handle. Many old soldiers
vet living will remember this kind OF
knife and will tell you what 4 very
useful implement it was.
The Confederate soldiers, many or
them, wanted to buy this knife from
Dave, but he refused all offers to pur-
chase It, though he sold off many other
articles. s54
Dave reached Andersonville and was
turned loose in the stoclIade; here he
spent many long months, saw much
misery among his fellow prisoners, aid
ed many of them with his money, no.
ticed that attempts ct escape were usu-
ally frustrated in some way, and at
length caino 10 the conclusion that att
lClltLSI CSSttpGS ilC 1884 h'S NV
many persons were concerned in them.
His hut stood not far from one o I
ner of the steckade, and he had looked
over the ground many times without
seeming to do so, and had concluded
that escape was possible by means OF
a tunnel. The prisoners in Anderson
vile used to dream of tunnels, see
them in their waking hours, have Wis
ions OF them in delirium, and instead
of babblings Of green fields, and absent
friends, and far away Northern homes,
their words were of tunnels as the
breath left their bodies. Hence there
was nothing unnatural in the determi-
nation Of Dave Jenkins that he would
make a tunnel and that he would es-
cape. Accordingly he set to work and
using the fork and spoon part Of his
big knife as spade and mattock, he
worked night after night, for days and
weeks and months. The most embar-
was the disposal of the earth that he
excavated some of it he placed in and
under the wretched collection of rags,
brush and straw that served him for a
secd. some ne carried away in his peck
tE*. s.iile liz hit about his hut, always
if strS oa,esul to do nothing to ex-
- ety ~aslticion among his captors as
q ssiii,t he WIS doing. and on the 10TH
u august. 1864, his tunnel was com
pieted and all that remained was for
him to enter It and break his way out
at the end of 1t, and then find his way
to the Federal lines; this was all, but
when you reflect that he was a boy
reared in the country, without any
knowledge Of geography, in a strange
State, surrounded by vigilant and re-
lentless enemies, you will agree that
the undertaking was enough to bring
.misgivings to the stoutest hclrt.
He measured his tunnel internally
with the greatest care, and he was
satisfied that its length was sufficient.
He determined to make his attempt
that very night, as he did not want to
let the tunnel lie unused for any length
of time lest it might be discovered. He
waited until just after midnight, when
nc SAtSlCo AlS LulliiSl, WOiIlca LIS way
to the end of the passage and very
cautiously opened a small hole. To his
horror a guard passed within less than
ten feet of him. While the guards
back was toward him he pushed his
way out, making no noise as he did so,
and stepped behind a small bush, and
the guard passed, going in the opposite
direction to that which he had been
walking before. Dave clutched his
knife tight IN his hand and buried the
keen blade between the guards shout
ders; he sank down, a shndder passed
ever his body and he died without a
sound. Dave vas about to take the
guards III and cartridges, but aban-
doned them when he found he had q
revolver belted around his waist. He
took this and the belt, dragged the
body a short distance way, and hac-
ried from the scene. He knew that es-
cape was IN absolute necessity. lie
had killed a guard, and should he be
%recaptured he would be summarily ex-
ecuted. For more than two hours he
had walked, when suddenly he heard
the boom Of a cannon in his rear and
knew 1t had been fred to notify the
surrounding country that a prisoner
had escaped from Andersonville.
He pushed on carefully, outstanding
his strength as best he could, and ever
" the lockout for at III