The Pacific commercial advertiser. [volume] (Honolulu, Hawaiian Islands) 1885-1921, 1909-01-24


assured the Confederate general with
all haste that they would willingly
transfer his army across the river.
This is Keating's version of the
rest:
"We went over to the Kentucky
side of the river and began to pile on
men wherever we could put them.
There was nothing pleasant about it
for me. Morgan and his officers sat
on the bunk, with their pistols aimed
at my back, while they cheerfully dis
cussed their respective ability as
marksmen. | remember hearing Nor
gan say that he could hit an apple at
fifty PAGES nine times out of ten.
"Capt. Pepper was a brave man
and l was terribly nervous, knowing
that if | didn't land exactly right
or got stuck in mud bank or some
thing that my life would not be worth
a nickel
SAT early morning we had the last
man over and prepared to go on our
way We supposed for a moment that
our troubles were over. But we were
not deceived for long. Morgan came
up to the captain and me after all
were landed and announced in a ioyial
manner that he contemplated burning
the steamer to the waters edge. He
did it, too. Then he wandered over to
where the captain and l were standing
and wished us a fond goodbye.
/ m sorry, boys said he, but it s
all in the fortunes of war. -
On two occasions Capt. Heating ac-
he
eminent in its war with the southern
states. One was when he saved
| gunboat's crew from starvation by
passing the Confederate lines near
| Red river and notifying Gen, Banks
troops of their predcament, and the
/ other time was when he plotted the
| Forest Queen past the fire of the re-
| bel forts near Vicksburg and saved
the only steamer out of feet of six,
which were to be used for transport
ing Union troops across the river.
! ''The time | passed the Confederate
troops,' said the old pilot, 81 car
ried my heart in my mouth for three
| solid hours. Physical suffering is bad,
/ but mental suffering is infinitely
| worse.
/ ''On this occasion the steamer of
/ which | was pilot was stranded with
| out provisions in the Red river. The
| Confederates had the boat watched
/ so it was supposed, and the men on
the vessel, determined not to surren-
der were slowly starving to DEATH
| I should mention that the steamer
was the converted gunboat Kickapoo.
cat the end of the third day of
suffering the captain called for volun
| teers to seek to pass the rebel lines
and inform Gen. Banks in the Union
camp of our plight. I offered to go
| with one sailor as my assistant. We
| were dressed as Confederate soldiers
in the dirty brown-and- gray uniform
SO much in vogue and started forth
| on our mission.
sit was a dangerous task at best
SO dangerous that we were not ex-
pected to escape alive. My missive to
| Banks was wrapped in a thin strip
of oiled silk and was placed between
the outer and inner soles of my shoe
For three hours we walked and finally
we met an old soldier, who told us,
| for drink, where the Yankee camp
was located.
'EHe seemed suspicious and we left
him hastily. Once as we walked along
the road three men stepped out from
behind trees and ordered US to halt
and give an account of ourselves We
explained that we had recently es-
capped from the Yankee lines and were
trying to find our regiment. Late at
night we crawled past the Confederate
outpost and on toward the Federal
camp. Early in the morning we saw
fires burning in the distance Not
2 knowing whether they were the lights
of the Yankee or rebel camps we Law
quiet waiting for the daylight so tina;
: we might see their uniforms. AS we
watched through the night we grew
cramped and tired until to remain in
one position longer was an agony that
could not be borne.
81 was crawling on nv knees.
moved ever so slightly, and in doing
so snapped a stick, which cracked
with the report of pistol. The sen
try whipped his gun to his shoulder
and ordered us to advance. Ever
then | think / should have held bach
hut for the certain knowledge that i
we were found lying there by eithel
the Confederates or the Union army
we would be shot without a trial.
X X X
81 yelled out that we were friend
| and advanced toward the sentry, whom
I could. dimly see by the fiickerins
light of the campfire. Walking eve
50 slowly. with my heart in my mouth
trembling at the result and thinkin:
of the awful fate that awaited th'
men on the Kickapoo should the sen
try be a Confederate. | advanced
When | was within ten feet of him
gave an almost inarticulate cry of joy
His uniform was blue.
81 ran toward him with my arm
outstretched. Astonished beyond meas
ure. he drew back, and as I wa
about to embrace him he lunged witt
his bayonet, stabbing me in the breast