The Ocala evening star. [volume] (Ocala, Fla.) 1895-1943, 1916-08-25

we "ouIu SAdSpefaLe ner and she
would come back, but she did not
she probably thought that we had not
used our heaviest artillery and was
setting trap for her, so she steamed
out to her usual station and resumed
her watch for blockade runners. One
other exciting incident took place be-
fore we left Coles Island. 1t occurred
between 2 a. m. and dawn of day.
While everybody, except the sentineIs
on duty and the officers of the guard.
were sleeping their sweetest sleep and
many, maybe, dreaming sweet dreams
of home loved ones, and sweethearts,
all were suddenly aroused by the rat
tie of the drum beating the "long-
roll" calling all of the troops to arms.
10 those who have never heard it un-
der similar circumstances let me tell
you that men get wide awake very,
quickly and so it was that before the
drum ceased its rapid rat-a-tat-tat we
heard its sound punctuated by the
rapid boom! boomi of cannon out at
sea and not far from the entrance to
our island. Very soon the troops
were all under arms and aligned at
their respective positions. The boom
ing of the cannons was still heard and
the flash of the firing could be seen
and the resemblance to distant lightn-
ing and thunder was very striking.
We soon discovered, however, that in
stead of approaching Stone Inlet that
it was getting farther away. We soon
formed the conclusion that blockade
runner had tried to run into the inlet
and the blockader had sighted her and
was chasing and firing at her. This
afterwards proved to be true, but the
blockade runner was too fleet on her
heels and her commander too familiar
with the ms and outs of the coast to
| be easily caught, and so eluded the
blockader and hid away in some creek
and the next night succeeded in MAX
ing port safely at Port Royal. The
sentinels on duty at our post had seen
several different colored rockets go up
from the blockader lying off Stone
and at once called for the corporal of
the guard and reported the fact and
the corporal at once reported it to the
officer of the guard and he to the COM
mander of the post. By that time the
rocket signals had been followed by
the boom of cannon shot and the
order was at once made to call the
entire force to arms. I heard that
same call to arms sounded many
times after that, both in the day and
at night, and when at night we were
| in line and ready for action much
quicker than we did that night ON
Coles Island, because on the island
there was no imminent danger threat
ening US and our long, peaceful stay
there enabled us to do safely what we
could not afford to do later on, so we
prepared for rest at night by making
ourselves as comfortable as conditions
would allow, and so had to clothe our
selves before we could go out and fall
in line. But there came times and
conditions afterwards when mother
earth was our bed, and we gladly laid
ourselves upon her fully clothed with
such clothes as we had) with our
cartridge boxes as pillows and our
rifles as our dearest bed-fellows. Then
when the alarm was sounded all we
had to do was to jump up, get in line
and were ready for action. Along IN
the first part of '62 the forces on
Coles Island were increased by the
coming of what was known as the
Eutaw battalion, which consisted of
two companies from Charleston-the
Washington Light Infantry, Compa-
mics A and B-under command of
Major Charles H. Simonton. This was
the nucleus of what was afterwards
the Eutaw or 18th regiment, S. C. v,
to which the Edisto Rifles belonged
after they enlisted Cor "three years or
the war;" when their first years en-
listment expired.
But this number is long enough, 50
whatever may have to say about the
Futaw regiment will have to post
pone until another day.
Laurie 7. Izlar.