The Baltimore County union. [volume] (Towsontown, Md.) 1865-1909, 1908-08-29

4 managed to be counted twice in suffi
4 cient numbers to make up the def
: cheney.
, The whole plot was nearly upset
Z by Hamilton's eagerness to see il
brought to successful end. Being
certain that the tunnel was sufficient.
! ly long, he dug upward, contrary to
. Roses counsel, and found, to his dis.
may, that the hole he had broken was
outside the shed in plain view of the
sentinels if they chose to notice it..
Rose then pushed an old shoe through
the hole and the next day by looking
out an upper window saw where the
old shoe lay and made recalculation.
On Saturday, February 6, 1864, it
seemed almost certain that the Con-
te6erates had discovered the plot.
Rose decided to push the work to an
Nars hetr was nsua1y negrecreu Dy
the Confederates. and Rose entered
the tunnel and worked all day with
out food or rest, accomplishing twice
the distance that any digger had done
up to that time.s The earth was COM
posed of dense, hard sand. The only
implement was a broad bladed cold
chisel.
On Monday morning Rose again de-
scended to the work. It was the
seventeenth day of that tunnel, and
Rose resolved that it should be the
last.
Until an hour after midnight his
work went on. Rose was nearly a
physical wreck. The perspiration
soaked his weary limbs. He could
scarcely initiate his lungs with the
poisonous air. His head swan.
In the agony of sufocation he drop
ped the dull chisel and beat his fists
against the roof of his grave with the
might of despair, when-blessed boon!
the crust gave way, and the loosen
ed earth showered upon his dripping
face, purple with agony. His eye
caught sight of radient star in the
blue vault above him. A food of
light and a volume of cool, delicious
air poured over him. At that very
instant the sentinel's cry rang out
like prophecy, "Half past I, and
all's wellP
oserecovered quickly. Hewas in
a yard under shed, with fence be-
tween him and the sentinels. He
walked out on the street and recon-
noitered little. Then he returned
to the tunnel, covered the exit with a
piece of plank and crawled back to
Rats hell.
The party of fifteen agreed that as
the night was nearly gone it would be
better to wait till the next night be-
fore attempting to escape. 1t was
also agreed that each member of the
party should have the privilege. of
taking one friend into his confidence.
e e cs+---:- -,---,- So
ing party out till an hour had elapsed.
Rose and his companions made
successful departure at 9 o'clock on
the evening of Tuesday, Feb. 9. But
the news leaked out, and the little
kitchen was soon crowded to suffoca-
ton with 200 prisoners, all clamor-
ing to get at the entrance to the tun-
mel. At the height of the uproar
some yelled "The guards l' and
panic ensued in which several prison
ers were trampled underfoot. The
room was quickly emptied, but the
alarm proved to be false, and many of
the soldiers returned and made their
escape.
Great was the surprise of the Con-
federates next day when the roll call
revealed the absence of 100 prisoners.
And as the fireplace had been rebuilt
by somebody and the last man out
had covered the hole in the ground
no visible trace remained to show the
astonished keepers how their tenants
had decamped. Curious crowds, hav-
ing read the newspaper reports, flock
ed to the neighborhood till finally
some one kicked aside the plank in
the yard and revealed the hole.
Of the 100 who got out fifty nine
reached the Union lines, forty-eight
were recaptured, and two were drown
ed. Among those retaken was Rose,
but he was exchanged for Confeder-
ate colonel on April 80.
LEES MOTHER BURIED BEFORE HIS BIRTH.
The one hundred and first anniver-
sary of the birth of General Robert
E. Lee, recalls the little known fact
he was born more than year after
his mother had been buried, furnishing
to the world one of the most astonish-
ing cases of reviviscence on record.
General Lees mother was by no
means an entirely healthy woman.
She suffered from catelpsy. and dur
ing prolonged trance, she was pro-
nounced dead. The body was pre-
pared for interment and the morning
of the third day after her supposed
death the remains were laid to rest in
J the family vault in the graveyard of
Stratford, Va.
While the sexton was cleaning UP
. and arranging some fresh flowers to be
placed on the casket, he heard faint
! voice as though of some one calling
/ for assistance. He listened closely
: and the voice was distinctly heard
again.
} Becoming satisfied that the voice
, came from within the casket, he al
) once opened it, discovering that Mrs.
, Lee was alive. Within short time
E she was safe in bed at her own home
Mrs. Lees recovery was slow, but
| she did regain good health and lit
, tie more than a year after she was
r buried alive her youngest son, Rob
. ert E., was born, and thus came int
4 the world one of her bravest men ant
: greatest generals.
? THE philanthropic lady was visit
ing a Glasgow slum and had just beef
ushered into house where the goot
2 wife was engaged washing. Her en-
e 11a~xnko tho Sr1fndc N