Andersonville, vol 4 | Page 9

consequences. This she allowed me to do. I shall ever feel grateful to
this woman for her protection. She was white and her given name was
"Sallie," but the other I have forgotten.
About daylight I strolled over near the office and looked around there
until I saw the Captain take his seat at his desk. I stepped into the door
as soon as I saw that he was not occupied and saluted him "a la
militaire."
"Who are you?" he asked; "you look like a Yank."
"Yes, sir," said I, "I am called by that name since I was captured in the
Federal Army."
"Well, what are you doing here, and what is your name?"
I told him.
"Why didn't you answer to your name when it was called at the gate

yesterday, sir?"
"I never heard anyone call my name." Where were you?"
"I ran away down into the swamp."
"Were you re-captured and brought back?"
"No, sir, I came back of my own accord."
"What do you mean by this evasion?"
"I am not trying to evade, sir, or I might not have been here now. The
truth is, Captain, I have been in many prisons since my capture, and
have been treated very badly in all of them, until I came here."
"I then explained to him freely my escape from Andersonville, and my
subsequent re-capture, how it was that I had played "old soldier" etc.
"Now," said I, "Captain, as long as I am a prisoner of war, I wish to
stay with you, or under your command. This is my reason for running
away yesterday, when I felt confident that if I did not do so I would be
returned under Wirz's command, and, if I had been so returned, I would
have killed myself rather than submit to the untold tortures which he
would have put me to, for having the audacity to attempt an escape
from him."
The Captain's attention was here called to some other matters in hand,
and I was sent back into the Stockade with a command very pleasantly
given, that I should stay there until ordered out, which I very gratefully
promised to do, and did. This was the last chance I ever had to talk to
Captain Hurtrell, to my great sorrow, for I had really formed a liking
for the man, notwithstanding the fact that he was a Rebel, and a
commander of prisoners.
The next day we all had to leave Macon. Whether we were able or not,
the order was imperative. Great was my joy when I learned that we
were on the way to Savannah and not to Andersonville. We traveled
over the same road, so well described in one of your articles on
Andersonville, and arrived in Savannah sometime in the afternoon of
the 21st day of November, 1864. Our squad was placed in some
barracks and confined there until the next day. I was sick at the time, so
sick in fact, that I could hardly hold my head up. Soon after, we were
taken to the Florida depot, as they told us, to be shipped to some prison
in those dismal swamps. I came near fainting when this was told to us,
for I was confident that I could not survive another siege of prison life,
if it was anything to compare to-what I had already suffered. When we

arrived at the depot, it was raining. The officer in charge of us wanted
to know what train to put us on, for there were two, if not three, trains
waiting orders to start. He was told to march us on to a certain flat car,
near by, but before giving the order he demanded a receipt for us,
which the train officer refused. We were accordingly taken back to our
quarters, which proved to be a most fortunate circumstance.
On the 23d day of November, to our great relief, we were called upon
to sign a parole preparatory to being sent down the river on the flat-boat
to our exchange ships, then lying in the harbor. When I say we, I mean
those of us that had recently come from Macon, and a few others, who
had also been fortunate in reaching Savannah in small squads. The
other poor fellows, who had already been loaded on the trains, were
taken away to Florida, and many of them never lived to return. On the
24th those of us who had been paroled were taken on board our ships,
and were once more safely housed under that great, glorious and
beautiful Star Spangled Banner. Long may she wave.

CHAPTER LXIII
.
DREARY WEATHER--THE COLD RAINS DISTRESS ALL AND
KILL HUNDREDS--EXCHANGE OF TEN THOUSAND
SICK--CAPTAIN BOWES TURNS A PRETTY, BUT NOT VERY
HONEST, PENNY.