Yorkville enquirer. [volume] (Yorkville, S.C.) 1855-2006, March 14, 1888, Image 1

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V | ^ ^ ~:" |*^*^^ ^^^MIM^lJ |y ^* *?* ,? Ngg^ f *.' . ; : ' '" lewis m:. grist, proprietor, j ,%\\ Inbejptonf Jfamfljj Itttospaper: Jfor t\t |romofion of tj\n fjfftitM, Serial, ^grinrltnral anb dtmmnmial Interests of tjr* SratJ. terms--$2.50 a year, in advance. VOL. 34. YORKYILLE, S. C.. WEDNESDAY, MARCH 143 1888. ';i'.,?: NO. 11. detected l?iwteg. FORGOTTEN. We loved each other dearly In childhood's happy day; We twined our hands together Amid our childi9h play; We joyed in gleesome laughter, Once, o'er each other's joy; We smiled and wept together When we were girl and boy. Far back through many summers My spirit roves to-night, Amid the fairy dream and When hopes were young and bright; I hear thy voice resounding .Along the sha'dy lane, I see thy small hand beckon Across the meadow plain. I start! ah, 'tis a vision! Full twenty years have past Since o'er the scented meadow You beckoned to me last. ?finti<mri ar? wb. and ehancine: Onr hearts are full of pain; No more the golden glaaness ^ Of youth may come again. v. - Ofte hour ago I liiefc the6 Amid a merry crowd And as you coldly passed me My heart beat high and loud. We once were friends together ; We loved each other well; And why you have forgotten The bitter world may tell! DARING AND SUFFERING. A History of the Andrews Bailroad Eaid Into Georgia in 1862. The Most Heroic and Tragic Episode of the Civil "War. Embracing a Fall and Accurate Accoqnt of the Stfcret Journey to the Heart of the Confederacy, the Capture of a Railway Trap, in a Confederate Camp, the Terrible Chase That Followed, and the Subsequent Fortunes of the Lender and HI. Psrtr. By WILLIAM PITTENGER, A MEBBEB 07 TBS EXPEDITION. [Copyrighted, 18S7, by War Publishing Co., N. Y.t and published by arrangement with them.J CHAPTER XI. A DIRECT RAILROAD CHASE. But we now had a good head of steam, and with a joyful bound our engine, as if refreshed from its rest, sped on again. We had been careful to so obstruct the track that the enemy was obliged to come to a full halt, and thus give us time to once more get out of sight. We passed Tilton in safety, and the water station, which at that time was at a different place from the wood yard, was soon reached. Our supply of this necessity was low, and without it our progress would be at once arrested. We stopped, adjusted the pipes, told the powder story ?although from the battered appearance of our only car, with a hole knocked in each end, that story was no longer plausible, but it answered for the moment and we succeeded in getting all the water we fc needed. Had any objection been made we would have taken it by force, and the assurance with which we went to work aided in securing confidence.'-. Before the , tank was full the pursuers came in sight, but seeing us they ran slowly, and as a party of our men had run back and put some ousirucuuxis uii mc uudn, uuiui ^uu shot, they were obliged to come to a full stop there, thus giving us the time needed. Then we mounted and sped on toward Dalton. It was advisable at once to get decisively ahead of the pursuers before reaching this town, which might present serious difficulties. As there were no bridges to burn now for a considerable distance, the only other thing was to try once more to tear up the track. The engine was again in good running condition, and we rushed rapidly forward, putting frequent obstructions on the track?mostly by dropping ties or sticks of firewood, but in one or two instances by reversing the engine, jumping out and piling up obstructions. At a favorable place we stopped again for a more permanent break. ' Long practice had made us skillful in this matter, and the last two stops had shown us that the enemy could not run upon us without great care. So we divided at once into four parties. Scott and a companion cut the telegraph; Knight carefully inspected the engine; two or three ran back just out of gunshot, and heaped obstructions on the track, while the remainder worked with might and main in taking up a rail. It was here that a little occurrence took place that has been much misrepresented. A southern account, widely copied, says that Andrews' men almost mutinied against him at this place. The facts are these: The writer and the men in the box car had come to feel that there was no need of running so long before the pursuing train, which we could see to be a short one, with probably not much if any greater force than our own. Now while no ?4- 4-v.n ~n i 1 no A/vnl,l as uiaiij wac cvu tuu iaa ua v,uuut iiiivi places to work?the process of lifting it with our imperfect tools wus very slow, requiring more than Ave minutes?I said to Andrews: "We can capture that tram, if you are willing." "How!'" lie asked. I answered: "Find a good place on a curve where there are plenty of bushes" (as the road had numberless curves, and ran mostly through woods, this was easy): "then let us put on some obstructions and hide; one of our engineers can run ahead a mile or two and come back after us; when the enemy stop to clear the track we will rush on them, and when we have captured them our other engineer am reverse their engine and send it in a hurry down the . track to clear the road of any more trains that may be following." Andrews said, in his quiet way: "It is a good plan. It is worth trying," and looked around in a meditative manner as if weighing the chances. Then the enemy's whistle sounded: we saw them rush up to the obstructions we had placed on the track, stop by reversing and labor as frantically to clear the road as we were doing in trying to raise the rail. * But our efforts were in vain. The stubborn spikes still held, and as they were ready to move on again, Andrews called out "All aboard," and we dashed away. That was not the place to make a light, as we all knew, for revolvers against shotguns and rides would have had no chance at long range; but from an ambush we could have been climbing into their engine and cars before they could pick up their guns, and the conflict would not have been many minutes doubtful. This was nearest we came to what a southern account called "Open mutiny"? a mere respectful suggestion in the line of our work. No officer was ever more heartily obeyed than was Andrews during . the whole of this day, and none of us said anything more about thig plan for the time, partly because we felc that our leader was better able to judge what was to be done than we, and partly, also, I must confess, because we thought he was Snly waiting for the best place to turn on ur foes, and that we would soon have all the fighting we wanted. The full speed of our engine was again called into requisition as we neared Dalton, and by the aid of a few ties dropped on the track we were once more a respectable distance ahead. "We needed this interval badly, for it was by no means certain that the switches at this point would be properly adjusted for our immediate passage through; and if not, serious difficulty might arise. "We might have a > battle with forces in front as well as in the rear, for Dalton was the largest town ' . we had reached since leaving Marietta. Here a road diverged to Cleveland in Tennessee, where it connects with the main line from Richmond to Chattanooga, thus making a large triangle, or, as a railroad man would say, a great Y: At that time no telegraph wires were on this cross road; they were not put up till 1.177. There were also numerous side tracks, and a probability that cars might be left standing on some of them; and as we had moro than made up our hour's delay at Kingston and were now much ahead of time, there was no certainty of the road being rightly adjusted for us. It was therefore necessary to stop at the opening of the switch, which was fortunately a little way down from the large passenger depot, which had a shed over all the tracks, and through which we had to pass. Here the coolness and adroitness of Andrews shone out with pre-eminent luster. It is likely that when we had spoken of fighting a little way back, his mind was vo+V?vritli fho r\mWom of Tincc. VtV/UJ/iUU J.UVUVI. ?( ikU l/iiw VI. |/(ivv ing Dalton, and of judging by what took place there whether the enemy was warned. The train was stopped, ho ran forward, observed that the track was clear, spoke to one or two bystanders, and was back to his post in an exceedingly short time. To one or two who had come up even in these few seconds, he said: "I am running this train through to Corinth, and have no time to spare," and nodded to ~ Knight, who once more put on'the full force of the engine?there was nothing to be gained by care in avoiding alarm any longer, for the distant whistle of the pursuer was heard?and we' rushed at the depot, which then stood right across the double track, and passed with fearful speed under its roof. Here Knight got his most terrible fright. The darting into the partial darkness of the shed was bad enough, but just at the far end the main track bends sharply to the left, and the swerve was so sudden, and the speed already so high, that Knight believed ho was rushing on another side track, and that in a moment would come the awful crash. But instead the engine instantly righted, and he again saw the track straight before him. But so quickly had we passed that we could not certainly determine whether the people at the stilt ion had been warned or not! A mile above Dalton, which was about i as soon as the headlong rush of the engine could be checked, we stopped again, I just opposite to where Col. Jesse Glenn's regiment of conscripts were encamped in a field. Their position, which was within 200 or 300 yards of ns, was probably not seen until we were close to them, and it was better to take the risk of their interference than to lose time by seeking another place for more pressing work. Again the wire was cut; but it was a second too late, for a message had been flashed through, no doubt even as Scott was bringing it down. The usual obstructions were here piled on the track, and we again essayed to take up a rail, for the Chickamauga bridges were just above, and we wanted time enough to get them on fire, hoping that Fuller would stop long enough at Dalton for the purpose of getting his telegram ready, to allow us to finish "the track lifting. No men ever worked with more desperate energy, but all in vain;-long before the rail was loose the pursuers were' again upon us. The race recommenced with all its speed and fury The great tunnel was a short distance ahead?a glorious place for an ambush, where, in the darkness, the guns of the enemy would be of little value. If Andrews was disposed to fight, there would be the place of all others to do it. With the smoke of our train filling the space, with our party in ambush along the sides, success would bo comparatively sure, if they had twice our number, for of course wo could not tell how much of a re-enforcement they might pick up at Dalton. But we kept right on through the tunnel and the village of Tunnel Hill beyond, where wo carefully drew down to conceul onr number from the curious eyes of any who might be about the station. At Calhoun Fuller had received a small but very effective re-enforcement?only a boy 13 years old, but worth a dozen ordinary men?by means of one of those apparently small circumstances which often influence the course of great events. At i Chattanooga the chief officers of the road had become alarmed by receiving no dispatches from Atlanta, or the stations below Kingston. They therefore directed the young assistant operator at Dalton to jump on the passenger train just then leaving that station and go south, sending them back word at each station passed till the cause of the trouble was found. 'He had only got as far as Calhoun when Andrews passed, and Fuller iu a moment after. The latter hardly came to a stop before he saw the operator, and called liim. and without a word of explanation I seize^l his hand and dragged him on tho ; train. In the run up, however, he rnadf i all the necessary explanations, and wrote | out the following dispatch: fuller's telegram. | "To Gen. Leadbetter, commander at Chattanooga: "My train was captured this a. in. at i Big Shanty, evidently by Federal soldiers : in disguise. They are making rapidly for I Chattanooga, possibly with the idea of ! burning thejrailroad bridges in their rear. I If I do not capture them in the meantime, ! see that-they do not pass Chattanooga. "William A. Fuller." j This he gave to tho operator, saying, | "Don't speak to anybody or lose a second I till you put that through to Chattanooga. Jump for the platform when I slow up, for I must push on and keep thoso Yankees from getting up a rail or burnI ing the bridges." It was terribly quick work. The opera' tor was at home in the office, and almost before Fuller had cleared the shed he was ' at the desk and the lirst words were over ! the wires. Whether they had time to get I the whole message over before the cut is j very doubtful, and not material, for the first'two lines would answer every purpose. Had Fuller stopped at this point, ! and himself went into the office long enough to set the operator at work, it is almost certain we would have had the rail I up, and then all the bridges above that | point would have been burned; though it i is still possible that enough of the mesj sage might have been pushed through to | secure our arrest in Chattanooga. This ! was another striking instance of the j many narrow margins on which this day | hinged. I As Fuller pressed on toward the great ! tunnel, even his resolute heart almost died within him, while all his party began to blame him for foolhardiness. He feared to plunge into its dark depths. It was still filled with smoke from our engine; and he well knew that if we jumped oil at ! the far end and hurled back our locomotive at him, it meant a horrible-death to every one 011 his train; and he was by no iy,o??c. thnt \vr? wniilil Tint do it. All*. I Murpliy, who had so ably stood by him ! all the while, here counseled prudence, I pointing out all the perils of an ambush. J But Fuller realized as apparently no one i else did the desperate need of pressing on | to save the road; and lie had made so ! many escapes ;jnd been so marvelously 1 favored that a kind of fatalism took hold j of him. He determined not to lose a minute, no matter what the danger might j be. It may as well be said here that no i prudent and common sense kind of puv| suit, such as possibly any other man I would have employed, could have had the j slightest chance of success. But even j Fuller quailed as they dived into the cloud j of smoke that hung around the entrance j of the tunnel, and held his breath for a i few seconds (they were still at full speed) i till lie saw with a sigh of relief a gleam of light ahead and knew that there was I no other engine now in the tunnel! On he pressed, for he knew the value of the Chickatnauga bridges ahead as well as we did. CHAPTER XII. A 15 U i; X I X G C A K. But for tlie wetness of the day all his i efforts even yet would have been foiled. We now did what had been in the mintl of Andrews, doubtless, for some time past?what lie might have tried even at the Oostenaula bridge had not the interval between that and Calhoun been so fearfully short. lie ordered us to lire our last ear while we were running. It was said easily, but was much harder to do. Everything about the ear was as wet as it well could be. The rain fell in torrents, and the wood was drenched in the tender. It was by 110 small effort and skillful ljring that the engine lire could be kept at the heat required for fast running. But desperate lingers tore everything combustible loose front, the ear, and smashed it into kindling. Some blazing i ; fagots were stolen from the engine and | i the lire made to burn. The rapid mo- I ; tion with driving .rain was an obstacle at i ! first, but as wc fed up the blaze and shel- | L tered it as well as possible, it grew rap- j i idly, till soon but one could stay on the ; car and watch it, and all the others crowded on the tender and locomotive. ' The steam was now gradually shut off i that we might come slowly upon the i bridge and be able to leave the burning car just at the right place. We came to a full stop at tiiis first Chickamauga bridge, a large one, and well covered. Inside it was at least drier than on the outside, and we doubted not that with time it would burn well. The only question was: "win tnac nmc ue given.- - v>u added almost the last of our oil and nearly the last stick of wood?knowing that a wood station was not far ahead, and if i this bridge could be made to burn well, i wc could have all the time we wanted to i get wood and everything else. In fact, we put life itself on this last throw, and left ourselves, in case of failuro, hopelessly I bankrupt. For a considerable time, as it seemed to us, though it must have Itfccii ' measured by seconds rather than minutes, j we remained on the other side of the fire I KINDLING A FIRE IN THE BOX CAR. I witching. Then the inexorable smoke of i ll tho foe was seen; the pin connecting the | burning car with our engine was pulleil : out and we slowly moved on. Too clearly ! we saw the ruin of all our hopes! To wait j the coining of our foes was vain. They ! were now near at hand, and we could see i their guns, with which they would be able | to fight us at long range. The car which, i if the day had been dry, would long before i this have filled the bridge with a mass of roaring llamc, was burning faster than 1 the bridge. To take it to another bridge j was useless, for the drenching rain would I have given it little chance to burn away j from the shelter of the bridge. Very sadly we left the tall column of smoke i behind. The pursuers saw the car, and 1 realizing how serious their loss would be | if it was permitted to consume the bridge, ! they pushed right into the smoke and I shoved the burning car on to Ringgold, ! but a short distance ahead, where it w;as J left to smoke and sputter in the rain on j the side track. V.'e were now on what proved to be our J last run. I have often been asked if this I day was not one of great fear and terror j on the part of those who were engaged in ! the race. For my own part, I cannot I honestly lay claim to any greater fear | than I had often felt in ordinary military ; service. No matter what happened, there was the assurance that we still had one j resource?the power to turn around and : attack the pursuing foe. From the be- J ginning, such a conflict had been present j to my mind as a matter of course. Be- i fore leaving camp, this had been reckoned j a natural consequence of our position. It I had been frequently talked of among the men, and not one of them seelned to re- j" gard it with any more dread than an ordinary battle. We had been careful to select large revolvers for use, and not for j show, and when we found the enemy gaining upon us, or our leader's plans for ! their destruction failing, we only felt or ! said that our time to strike would soon come. We did not have the boastful feeling that we were an overmatch for a large body of southern soldiers, for we all | knew how desperately they could and ; often did fight; but of the ordinary citi- j zens gathered up, as we persumed our j pursuers were, or even of conscripts, we j had no great fear. That we had not our accustomed arms was a serious disadvantage, but this could be remedied by getting into close quarters; and we trusted that our leader, who had shown such wonderful skill in management, would be able to put us within short range of the pursuing train, where we felt sure that j we could quickly give a good account of it. i Probably the fact of Andrews having never been in battle, but always engaged in schemes where his own cool daring and sagacious planning counted for everything, and mere force for nothing, made him hesitate to order an attack which would throw aside all these qualities and determine the issue by simple fighting. A time was near when we would firmly have disputed our leader's command if there had been an officer of any authority among us who could have been substituted for him; but not until Andrews himself had definitely abandoned his authority. Many times the question has been asked: "Why did you not reverse your engine, and, jumping off, let it drive back at the enemy?" What good could that hn.TR done? If their on cine and our own had been destroyed, as was very probable, j together with a considerable number of lives, we would only have been where we were before we captured the engine at all, | except that the whole country would have been aroused and our disguise thrown off. ' The second train would have been on the j ground in a few minutes and the power of pursuit would have been undiminished, j "We had no wish to sacrifice our own on- | ginc until the last effort possible had been j made. To merely destroy had no charm for us, when that destruction could j neither promote our escape nor serve a military purpose. CHAPTER XIII. TIIE LAST HOPE. We crouched down as well as we could in the tender while passing Ringgold, that the enemy might not sec our number, and when beyond the town we arose and looked about us. The country was mostly j wooded and rough, being much cut up by the branches of the swollen Cliickamauga creek. We had no fuel, though we might have taken on a few water soaked fence j rails and broken them to burn; but what j would have been the use? Every com- i bustible scrap was carefully gathered up and thrown into the engine. Worst < symptom of all, a large pair of saddle i bags, which we had never seen Andrews without from the time of the midnight conference, together with his cap and j some other pieces of clothing that lie did i not need for immediate use, were Hung remorselessly into the furnace. Various papers went along. These were probably } documents that lie Reared would compromise himself or others in case of capture, j Such preparations were indeed ominous. But his next command?the last lie ever gave to us as a party?was more dreadful still, and for the first time that day there I shot a pang of mortal terror to my heart. Not the crash of the engine down an embankment, nor the coming i?f another train of the enemy from the north, shutting us between two tires, would have j caused such a sense of despair and hopeless misery to steal over me. This was the order which, as intimated before, our nan v. had they been properly organized, would not have obeyed. For our situation was still far from des- j ]>erate. Aside from the en pi lire of the : pursuing train, wliieli would now have ! been very dinieiill from the fact that we had neither fuel for rapid running, nor the obstructions on board that were necessary to place us far enough ahead for an ambuscade, there was another plan to j winch our leader was virtually pledged, j which presented every prospect of saving | our own lives, though it was now too late j to accomplish our original purpose. We ! were some live miles beyond Ringgold, j within a mile of < Jruysville, or nineteen ! miles by the longest railroad course front Chattanooga. From that city westward j to Bridgeport was twenty-eight miles fur- i ther. But the nearest way to Bridgeport was not through Chattanooga, but further south, and by that route it was not distant more Hum thirty-Jive or forty miles. The direct course was at right angles with llio numerous mountain ranges, wliicli here run almost north and south, a route over which cavalry could not bo used, and which was known to more than one of our party. Two comrades had pocket compasses which would havo guided us in thick woods or in cloudy weather by day or night. Now to have left our train in a body, and without delaying to seek concealment, to have struck over the streams and mountains at right angles, as rapidly as wo could go, would have been our most hopeful course. Long before night of the next day wo would have been safe within Mitchel's lines. Why not? How could the enemy have captured us? If they sent cavalry, these would necessarily have mado long circuits and have been obliged to adhere to the lines of the road, and thus could not have come near us while clinging to the valleys anil the mountain sides. Even in thick woods they could not have overtaken us. If they followed us with a strong party on foot, we fleeing for our lives, would not have deserved to escape if we could not have held our distance for forty miles or more. If they-had ridden ahead and raised the whole country for a general man hunt, they would have had onlv twentv-four hours or less to organize it, and no small party then could have arrested twenty armed men. In fine, this plan of escape through a mountainous and densely wooded country did not appear to me to be more dangerous than u cavalry dash on the lines of the enemy's communications?an every day military affair. Even if Mitchel did not prove to be in the neighborhood of Bridgeport when wc arrived, wo would then have been in the loyal mountainous district, where we would have met as many friends as foes. All that we needed in the way of provisions and guides our force would have enabled us to command, and even guns and ammunition could readily have been gathered on our way. But <>.11 these advantages depended on our keeping together under one head. An army scattered and disorganized is lost; and our little army was no exception. The fatal command which Andrews now gave as wc were huddled together in the wood box of the tender was to jump off, one by one, scatter in the woods, and each man strive to make his own way back to the Union army! "We hesitated, but had no concert of action, no leader, no time for council, and the instinct of obedience was still strong upon us; but it was a fatal order, and led directly to the calamities that followed. It transformed us in a moment from a formidable body of picked soldiers, ready to light to death, into a scattered mass of fugitive boys, bewildered and hopeless in an enemy's country. Yet no one of us felt like censuring our leader for this order, which every one at the moment believed to be a terrible mis take. Probably lie thought that each man of the party would find relief in being cast entirely on his own resources. It must further be remembered, in explanation of this mistaken order, that Andrews had slept none the night before, that he had been nearly twenty-four hours without food, and that he had spent nearly two days and a night in the most exhausting labors, both mental and physical, that it is possible to conceive. Ho had seen his cherished plans, when on the brink of success, overthrown by what seemed the remorseless hand of destiny. To the many failures and sorrows of his past life had been added the crowning misfortune of this defeat. Perhaps under his calm brow he realized this with an intensity of anguish, and felt that the greatest favor he could do those he had led within sight of a horrible death, and into the presence of an enraged and triumphant foe, was to separate them at once from his own dark and shadowed destiny. If so, that was the most fearful mistake of all; and as this order was given, we could almost, as we looked southward through the driving rain and the storm clouds, behold already the dark outline of the Atlanta scaffolds! V LEAVING THE LOCOMOTIVE. It was pitiful. The General had served Us well ever since the morning hour in fearful speed and patient waiting, in exulting raptures and in almost despair. It was hard to abandon her now. She was substantially uninjured. The engineers, Brown and Knight, had taken good care of her, and with wood and oil in abundance, there would have been no difficulty on her part in completing the run to Runtsvillc. She was still jogging along at the rate of eight or ten miles an hour, and could maintain that pace a little longer. The pursuers had also diminished their speed, so as to just keep us in sight, having apparently no wish to press upon what may nave seemed to them like a wounded and dying lion. The command to "jump oil and scatter" was repeated with the injunction to be quick about it, as the engineer wished to reverse the engine and drive it back upon the enemy. With such a reason there could be no more hesitation. It is said that some three or four had already got off at the first word of command, but the most of us had hesitated, not on account of the still rapid motion of the train, but in the idle hope that in some way this terrible parting might be averted. Now ono after another clambered down on the step and swung off. 1 was neither among the first nor the last, and jumping unskillftilly out from the step, instead of forward, whirled over and over on hands and feet for several revolutions. Rising in a dazed condition, though unhurt, with the exception of a few scratches from the briers with which the place abounded, I looked over the Unimated scene with the deepest interest. The men who jumped oil were, according to instructions, flying indifferent directions, a few others were just coming off the engine in much the same way that I had done, while the engineers were attempting to carry out their scheme of reversing the engine, which could do uo good now, except possibly to delay the inevitable pursuit a little, and give us a better opportunity to organize our plans. The brakes of the tender were put on still more to diminish speed, and the reversal was made. Here is a slight conflict of authority. The pursuers say that the brakes were not loosed a train: but our engineers are equally positive that they were. It is not material, for the result is the same. The steam power was so low, that though the engine moved back it was with moderate velocity, and I saw the pursuers reverse also, and coming to a full stop, whistle two or three times as it approached?a seeming whistle of alarm, though there was little in the approach of our poor General to fear; and then they moved slowly before it for a short distance till the two were in contact, when the weaker stopped and the steam was shut off. The great railroad chase was over. CHAPTER XIV. TIIK CAPTURE OF THE It AIDERS. The last stage in this remarkable enterprise may be . more briefly described. The raiders, wearied, hungry and without guides and ignorant of the country, and with 110 means of directing their course, were in a most unfavorable position for attempting their escape. It was probably a little after noon when the locomutivo was abandoned. Two trains of pursuers were at hand, and these soon exchanged the cliasc by rail for a hunt in the woods. Yet they did not rely so much on what they could personally ?lo in the way of pursuit, as in rousing t he whole country, and in sending out searching parties from every village and along every road. Swift riders were dispatched in every direction to spread the alarm. Telegraph stations ahead were reached and messages flushed over the wires, which gave, often with a good deal of exaggeration, the outlines of tlie occurrences of the day, and summoned loyal ('onlrdcratcs to put forth j MARK TOOD. K. Y. HAWKINB. 4. fftQLSOX. 4. A. PORTER. D. A. DORKKY. r S.?TEW of TnE^KSCAPEU RAIDERS. their utmost efforts to prevent the escapo i of tbo fugitives. Such appeals were not in vain. Within twenty-four hours, in i spite of the storm that was raging, all the country between the scene of the chase and the Union lines was strongly nnd ; vigilantly guarded, and every means em| ployed to prevent any fugitive from lurk, in the woods or passing northward, j Yet the writer has always believed that tif the sky had been clear so as to render traveling by the sun and the stars possible for the first day and night, he and probably many others would have alarming of the country took time; and it was practicable to have traveled swiftly ahead of the pursuit clear WILUAM PITTESGKH. J? lta .Fcd ' , lines. Iii the afternoon and stormy night, by incessant journeying, I succeeded in getting far away from the abandoned train; so that when at midday I was captured near Lafayette, Ga., I was more than twenty miles distant in a straight line, which represented over double that distance of devious flight. This would have carried me almost out of danger if it had been in a northwest direction?but unfortunately it was southwest! I was confined for one day at Lafayette, and then sent under strong guard to Chattanooga, expecting immediate death. Aly companions fared no better. "Without food, dreading an enemy at every house and on every road, and with no means of directing their footsteps, they wandered around for longer or shorter periods of time, and were at length all captured. Andrews, with all his marvellous skill, was not more fortunate in eluding pursuit than others. No resistance was offered, for in each case the capture was made by overwhelming force. With1 in a week all but two were secured. These owed their comparative fortune to the fact that they started in an eastern direction, and were therefore less closely followed. Falling in with some Union sympathizers, they received valuable aid and information; and afterward securing a boat, floated down a small tributary to the Tennessee river, and then directly past Chattanooga and Bridgeport. vThey supposed t&einsrtvtti at length*"to 1)6 out of danger, and learning that Gen. Mitchel's forces were in Stevenson, they entered boldly, only to find that he had fallen | back and that they were in the midst of gray coated soldiers! They tried to extri; cate themselves in vain, were arrested, j detected in their disguise and sent back to Chattanooga, where they found all the other members of the ill-fated band. Even the two who had been accidently left behind at Marietta on the morning of the chase, were discovered and brought to the common gathering place at Chattanooga. Our prospect here was most gloomy and desperate. Captured within the enemy's lines, without uniforms or regular arms, we had every reason to anticipate the severest treatment. Yet nearly two months intervened before any mow was scrucK?a ueiay causea prooauiy by the reference of tho whole case to Richmond and 6ome apprehension of Federal retaliation. CHAPTER XV. AN AWFUL TRAGEDY AND A DARING ESCAPE. ' It was at Knoxville in cast Tennessee i that the soldiers were first arraigned for ; trial. Previously, the leader, Andrews, , had been tried at Chattanooga but no dej cision had been rendered. Little time was 1 needed for the proceedings of the court, as : the raiders did not deny belonging to the Union army, and having entered the enemies lines with hostile purpose. On ! this was based the charge of being spies. In the case of the leader there was added : the charge of disloyalty to the Con' federacy, as he had professed to be a friend of their cause, and to be engaged in their service. Each raider was tried separately, and only one of them each day was brought before the court mnrtial. There seemed no reason for these very deliberate proceedings, but some of the raiders had afterward reason to be exceedingly grateful for the delay in their own case which i was thus occasioned. "When only seven | of the number had been tried, a sudden advance of the Union forces broke up the court and caused a hasty transfer of the , whole party?those who had been, as well i as those who had not been tried to At lanta., Ga. No verdict had been communicated to the men who had been court , martialed. In a few days, however, the sentence of immediate execution arrived ! for them. Andrews had been separated ; from his comrades and put to death a week earlier. The seven soldiers met their death with a heroic fortitude which excited the admiration and regret I even of their enemies! No event of the | war made a more profound impression upon the people of Atlanta, where all these events are still vividly remembered. In the hurry and confusion of great military events the fourteen survivors seem for n time to have been forgotten. But" in October of the same year we became convinced that nnother court mari tial was about to assemble to adjudge our ! case. We l.?d no reason to hope for a difI ferent verdict from that already given; and we resolved to strike boldly for our freedom, preferring death even in hopeless fight to quietly waiting for the executioner. Accordingly, when the jailor brought our food in the afternoon, he wns seized and held silent while the keys were wrested from him and the doors unlocked before an alarm could be given. There were seven fully armed sentinels 011 duty. Five of these were secured at the lirst rush and their muskets wrested from their j grasp; but the other two lied through the prison gate and gave the alarm! Greater [ success than this was scarcely possible in ; the attack of unarmed prisoners upon vigilant guards. But a strong reserve just outside of the gate was almost immediately on the scene of action, and the strife became too unequal to be longer maintained. Nothing but tlight in the clear sunlight toward the woods, a mile away, remained. There was a wild chase, rapid bring, and for a time the belief prevailed that a number of the raiders had been killed. This was not the case; but six were retaken and led buck to the prison front which they had broken out with such high hopes a little while before?the writer among this unfortunate number, j That some should have been recaptured is not to be wondered at; the marvel is that any escaped; and the marvel grows when their fortune is followed further. They traveled in couples, concealing tliemj.selves during the day and making what ; progress they could during the night. They suffered greatly from hunger and | from the cold that soon came on. Two of them went westward, and finally, obtaining possession of a boat, drifted down the | Tennessee river till they arrived at the I Union lines, nearly six weeks after break; ing out of prison. Two others went northI ward through Tennessee to Kentucky, and still another two followed ilio sami general route, but kept further to tin eastward; the four reaching the Fedora posts nfter having endured great suffer ! ings in the mountains. The lust two entered upon a longer bu more speedy course. Starting southwes they reached the banks of the Chatta hooche river, where they purloined a boa untl were soon gliding placidly toward tin gnlf of Mexico. They were in consider able peril from the rapids near Colnmbus Ga., and were obliged to abandon tbeii skiff and make a difficult detour to pas; this obstacle; but seizing another boa below the rapid3 they ran on, with man} notable adventures, till they at lengti reached Appalachicolu bay, where the; rowed boldly out to sea and wtro picket up by the Federal blockading squadron They made the whole journey in less thai a month from setting out, and were thu; able to carry the lirst definite news t< w asiimgiou 01 uie lonunes ul mi; ciuti prise in which they had been engaged. We who had been recaptured went bacl to our prison with heavy hearts, believing that ffte sentence against which we lin< striven would now fall upon us. But ou anticipations were not realized. We wer strictly guarded in Atlanta, first in tin city prison, and afterward in the bar racks, for two months, and then for warded to Richmond. We were not evei yet recognized as prisoners of war, ant were always made to feel that we were ii especial danger; but no further cour martial was convened for us. At Rich mond we were sent at first to the sam< prison as other captive Federal troopsthe celebrated Libby?but were soon re moved to Castle Thunder, where we re mained for the winter. The Federal sec retary of war, Edwin M. Stanton, wa: deeply interested in our expedition afte he had learned the particulars of it fron those who had escaped, and he dircctei that efforts should be made to induce th< Confederates to consent to our exchange In this lie was finally successful, tliougl we were not to be exchanged as prisoner of war, but to be included in a specin arrangement made for sonic IJOO citizen: and fugitives on each side against whon there were charges more or less grave. WILLIAM BENSIXGKR. WILLIAM REDDICK. ROBERT DCFFVM. , JACOB PARROTT. E. II. MASON. GROUP OF EXCHANGED PRISONERS. On the 18th of March, 1803, the ex change was effected, and with feeling: that cannot he described the writerrnn< his live companions returned to enjoy t hi sweets of safety and freedom. Sea reel i able to realize their good fortune, the; journeyed by truce boat from City Point" Va., to Washington, where they were- ro ceived by President Lincoln anil othe: high officials with every mark of honor So ended our experiences of daring nni ! suffering in connection with the grea Andrews railroad raid into Georgia. [THE END.] SENTIMENTAL AND COMIC SONGS. An i n teresti ng fact about successfu songs may be nofod, and that is, onl^ sentimental song make any money Humorous songs become very popu lar. They are applauded in the the atre when a favorite singer siug them, and are laughed at unrestrain edly, but very few of the audienci ever think of buying copies of them This is Deculiarlv true of that des cription ofthehumorousditty knowi as the topical song. It may be ex plained that this is a song in whicl the material of the-different verses i arranged to give point to a signifi cant phrase which invariably form the last line of the verse. The per formance practically amounts to pig gling with language, the effect com ing from the, humorous and unex pected illustration which can be ad duced of the idea embodied in th< adopted phrase. Given on the stage by an exper singer, who enforces the points of th< verses by appropriate action and fa cial expression, these songs are verj effective. Sung in the parlor by ar ordinary vocalist and without theef feet which comes from the assembly of a large number of people, these songs almost invariably fall fiat. Ir consequence they are very seldorr sung there, and the music publisher: who give them to the world find the world ungrateful, much to the pub lisher's pecuniary grief. On the oth er hand, a sentimental song may be sung in the home circle by an inex perienced singer with very fair effect Somehow or other the underlying sentiment survives the most outra geous treatment. It has better stay ing qualities than humor has. The melodies are simple, the thought ex pressed find a welcome among al classes of people, and the sheet mush finds its way to thousands of pianc racks throughout the land; and se the publisher becomes happy anc affluent. The Laws of Heredity.?^ certain man had, during his entire lifetime, gratified?his every passion and died with an oath on his lip; and a scorn of decency in his heart He left three sons. In spite of theii mother's prayers and tears, each sor followed his father's blighting ex ample. Like their father, at ne period in their lives did they eve: show the slightest desire to reform So reckless were they that not om of the three lived to be twenty-fiv< j years old. Two of the brothers diec 1 unmarried. The third had a gooi | wife, but did not live to see his son j who was born a month or two aftei his death. Every care was taken to surround this child with good influences. lit knew nothing of the dissipation o his grandfather, father and father'' brothers. They were dead. His mother never spoke of them. As a lad he was brutal and vicious in the extreme. "I don't want to b( good!" was his favorite expression if taken to task for a boyish misdeed Before he was 12 years old he had run away from home eight times, tc associate with children of the gutter, He is now 21. He is a drunkard | a thief?for he stole jewelry from his mother to pawn?and adissolute rep! robate. He declares that if he knew of any vice into which he has not plunged he would straightway test it. He has broken his mother's heart. With the utmost complacency he is watching her die of grief for hisdepravity. Nothing affects him. He is as indifferent to punishment as he is to tenderness. If he lives ten years longer, he will reach the gallows.? Ph iIctdelph ia News. aST It is mind, soul and heartnot taste or art?that, make men great. I piscctlamemisi fading. For the Yorkrvilie Enquirer. I REMINISCENCES. (0? WESTERN YORK. About as far back as the writer can t remember, Clark' & Co. kept a store 0 at Hopewell, near Howell's Ferry. They kept a good stock of goods and ' had generally alively company about 3 them "feastingotf leisure." The late t William Beard was clerk, if not part j owner, in the firm also. There was a j man by the name of Broadneck who j used to help those * who congregated 1 at the store to $&joy themselves. . The members of the firm and their i clerks were Tenaesseeans. They 3 hauled bacon from Tennessee to 3 supply their demand. , Next to Hickofy Grdve this was , another of Western York's public v i ti T pmut's. 11 wits an tiecviuu previuct. ; l At Dp. Wright's? rfop?well postoffice' v was kept. This, by the way, was one e of the oldest postoffices in the county, 0 though its location has been changed - several times. I cannot remember - that it was ever kept in the store 1 house. It was first at Dr. Wright's; 1 then at J. M. Smarr's, its present 1 location. Since the war it was re1 established at the Gordon Moore place; thence taken back to its presl ent situation, where J. M. Smarr, " Esq., assumed the duties of post] master, and since his death it has . been conducted by his widow, Mrs. 3 M. E. Smarr, an efficient officer and r an excellent lady, i Between Gordon Moore's place and 1 Dr. Wright's was the muster ground, a Here a small company of militia. would meet and drill every three 1 months. The battalion drill ground ? was on the road above Blairsville, \ near the present Blairsville post d office. The regimental drill ground, 1 aslhavealreadysaid, wasat "Smith's _i j fl-u m ? iun oiu neiu," near me resilience ui me late N. P. Kennedy. I do not know the number of the regiment, but it was made up of the north and south battalions of Western York. Occasionally the regiment would parade at Yorkville. This, I think, was generally when the Governor was to review the troops. The north battalion drilled at "Galloway's old field," near King's Mountain battle ground. These two battalions included all the militia in Western York. The eastern portion of the county constituted another regiment. The two regiments would generally meet at Yorkville and the Governor would review them. A portion of the town of Yorkville was iucluded in thesouth battalion, I think. I remember the contest between Capt. J. Felix Walker and Col. W. II. I McCorkle for major of the south bat! talion. Walker was elected. The next contest between them was for the colonelcy of the regiment. Both of these elections were hotly contested?only such a contest as the "Nation hoosiers" gloried in. This last contest was in 1854. I do not suppose 3 Western York ever witnessed such a l spirited campaign as this?certainly 3 not of a military character. Whisky ; was freely used. At the "Brier r Patch" Joe Bolin was treating for , Col. McCorkle. He would call out: - "All McCtirkle's friendfc come' Hp r and take a dTink." The "Nation" and "Blue Water" were almost solid ! for McCorkle. The south battalion stuck to Walker. Both these candidates retained their positions, in the estimation of the people until the breaking out of the civil war, when each took a company into the Confederate service. Col. McCorkle com' manded Co. A, 12th S. C. Regiment, ? and Major Walker Co. F, 18th S. C. Regiment. Of these companies we " have pleasant recollections \yhich we " propose to incorporate in these "rem3 iniscences." Col. McCorkle survived the war, 3 and has been identified with the ma terial welfare and prosperty of York " county ever since. Capt. Walker 1 was killed at Second Manassas. His " company was made up principally 1 in Uniorf county, where he was rais9 ed. Capt. McCorkle's company was " made up principally from York 3 county, with a few men from North " Pacolet, in Union county. No State " or county in the Confederacy gave a " better command to the service than his. We have followed its history from Bay Point, S. C., November B 7th, 1S01, to Lee's surrender, at Appomattox, April 9th, 1865, and have 1 ground for this assertion. These with | 3 the other men of Western York be longing to other commands, shall ocf cupy a prominent place in these 1 "reminiscences." In no partisan spirit we claim that r the troops of York county were sec! ond to none in the service. It was 1 principally the York troops that re1 ceived the fatal blast at the renown3 ed "Crater;" when many of them 3 were hurled instantly into eternity, or buried, perhaps alive, beneath the " debris, while their comrades, stag3 gering from the shock, rallied and - coirorl tho f'nnfprlprni?v. Besides matters of a military na> ture, York county has experienced " many warm political contests be" tween different strong and influen; tial men. A long listof them might be produced, notably Hon. I. 1). ' Witherspoon, Col. It. G. McCaw and 3 Col. \V. B. Wilson. The last fierce ) political contest was between Col. 3 McCaw and Col. Wilson, for the 1 Senate, in 18G0. Not a stone was left unturned by either party that promised strength to their respecl ive candidates. The writer was 3 too young to know anything about , the contest except the actors in it. 5 A considerable fortune was spent . on the issue. Col. McCaw was r elected. It was such contests as l these that put the "Nation," "Blue - Water," "Sandy Branch" and the ) "Coaling Ground" on their mettle, r These "hoosiers," many of them bare . footed and in their shirt sleeves, 3 would meet at Hickory Grove on 3 these occasions, and when some can1 didate's friend would diffuse a little 1 "solid comfort" among them, then , look out for squalls, r The "'lection" was a great place j and time with "Bid" Satulling. He 1 and Joe Childershad a fight at Hick3 ory Grove in 1856. Joe got the best f of it. "Did"fcvas York's renowned 3 walker. I have heard men say he 3 could walk 50 miles in 10 hours, and they would have bet on it. He was 3 a small man, weighing little, if any3 thing over 100 pounds. Bill Black, well, whose poetical genius has been . referred to in these reminiscences, I was "Bid's" brother-in-law. Bill ) had a better grade of sense than goes . to make up a'common "wag." He , had a more commanding address i than George Cobb had, and he could more easily "take in" parties unacquainted with him. At the beginr ning of the war he volunteered in , McKissick's cavalry company from i Union. i The day the company left Union for Camp Hampton, below Columhia their ramn of instruction, the citizens of Goshen Hill gave the comi pany a fine dinner. The writer was i in the same company. Some time after we settled down on the coast, Bill got on the sick list. lie couldn't eat the rations; everything was wrong with him. One day, in company with some of the men from one of the lower counties, Bill put in his complaints about the rough living in camp ; that all the men would die if such treatment was not changed, &c. The writer came walking along leisurely toward the group who were in sympathy with Bill. (Bill wa3 aware that the writer knew his pedigree). He said: "I had the best dinner at Goshen Hill the day we left Union, I have had sinqe we left home," (about that time lie cast his eyes around, and knowing what would follow, continued his sentence) "Yes ; and for a long time before I left." Had a bombshell burst in their midst they could not have been more astonished than at this unexpected collapse of Bill's aristocrat^ airs: K On a certain occasion Dr. Alexa? der White was surrounded by a crowd of ruffians at Hickory Grove, who would perhaps have mobbed him. He was no man to fear men. He stepped back a pace or two and, drew a spear and defied the crowd to "pitch in." This unexpected and dauntless move of.the Doctor paralyzed the crowd, who agreed to let him alone. Many such scenes could be related of these times, but too many of them would be wearisome. One time I was told that J. D. Smarr, Esq., called upon a renter for the rent of his place between Hickory Grove and Hopewell. The rent was to be paid in money. The renter didn't have enough money to settle the debt, or perhaps had none at all. Mr. Smarr agreed to take a note for the amount, which the renter told him to keep until it wore out. and then come back and he would give him another. j. l. s. A TRIBUTE TO MOTHERS. It has been beautifully said of a mother that "she is the morning and evening star of life. The life in her eye is always the first to rise, and generaally the last to set upon the cnecquereu nie or man." ane wieias a power more decisive far than syllogism in argument or courts of last appeal in authority. Next to omnipotence hers is the strongest moral influence known upon earth. She has been called "the Divinity of Infancy." She can shower around her the most genial of all influences and from the time when she first laps her little one in Elysium by clasping it to her bosom, "its first paradise," to the moment when that child is independent of her aid, her smile, her word, her wish is an inspiring force. A sentence of encouragement or praise from her is a jdy for a day. A mother's look, a mother's smile, 01 a mother's word may seem to be a small and insignificant thing. But more mature reflection will bring it to a very different conclusion. We might ask the one who may be tempted to attach but little importance to the influence of the mother, is it a little thing to fashion an immortal spirit after a heavenly model? Is it a little thing to develop infant powers and bring to light all that seems hidden in the soul?to train the ear by sweet sounds and the eye by lovely colors? Is it a little thing to teach the use of language and form what is emphatically called our mother tongue? Is it a little thing to notice Ihe first ar ticulate utterance, or rather create and call them forth? Is it a little thing to receive from God an immorful hoi a r* in o ctofo nf nAnotro on/1 l?tl 1L* ** vyi U\-rnc*fe^ i*cx* helplessness, and stamp on its young spirit the love of the noble, the heavenly, the pure? All this power belongs to the mother, and all this influence the mother may wield, if recognizing her dependence on God, the fountain of all holy influences, she takes his will to guide her and leans upon his gracious power to strengthen and sustain her. It is the godly mother?the mother whose heart is illuminated with heavenly light and quickened and sanctified by the Holy Spirit?that can offer the simple, tender, touching prayer which the youngest can comprehend, and can seize upon the happy moment for implanting truth. She, and she only, can time all and rule all by that scepter of genuine, heartfelt love. A little boy when asked what made home pleasant and beautiful, and why one house was not as much a home as another, remarked, pointing to his mother, "Because she is here!" "True, living, consistent piety is the mother's brightest ornament, her truest glory, her noblest support, and her richest treasure. Her life should be a calm, holy, beautiful walk from the hearthstone to the altar fire; from the bosom of her family to the throne of God. It has been the testimony of good men in all ages that they owe chiefly to their mothers the best inspiration of their lives. "I had rather I possess my mother's picture," once "wrote the poet Cowper, "than the richest jewel in the British Crown." The venerable John Quincy Adams once said, "It is due to gratitude and nature that I should acknowledge and avow that, such as I have been, whatever it was, and such as I am, whatever it is, and such as I hope to be in all futurity, must be ascribed, under Providence, to the precepts and example of my mother." Sweetly and truly has the poet suug: "The sounds that fall on mortal ear, As dew-drops pure at even, That soothe the breast or start the tear, Are Mother, Home and Heaven !" Bringing up Children Rationally.?It is as natural to a child to he happy as it is to a fish to swim. But for this they need a certain amount of "letting alone." It is a great mistake for parents to hamper their children with fooli9h restrictions. We pity the little B's, our next-door neighbor's children, from the bottom of our heart. There isa picket fence in front of the house, and they are scarcely allowed to go near it, lest they should climb and hurt themseves. They cannot cli.mb a tree lor the same reason. They may not skate or swim, or have a gun. The consequence of this training is that their parents have made cowards of them all, with the exception of little Bessie, who is the most daring little mischief that ever wore a sun-bon net, and she has learned to be deceitful and plays all her mad pranks well out of sight of her parents' eyes. We caught her the other day walking the railing of a bridge that crossed the track of a railroad a hundred feet below. The railing was not a foot wide, and she triumphantly told us that she had walked it while the train was passing under. It was enough to make one shudder. Don't faucy your boy is made of glass. Grant a reasonable request, and let him feel that when you refuse, it is for his own good. Between the Jellybys and the Gradgrinds of life, children have a hard time of it. The youngest child needs some sort of agreeable occupation, and a certain amount of physical freedom. There is nothing more painful to young people than to feel that life is one dull routine, and that "nothing ever happens," as we once heard a disconsolate lad remark. BsaT We all have our secret sins; and if we knew ourselves we should not judge each other harshly. i ^