Frank Before Vicksburg
Page 13
CHAPTER XIII.
The Scout's Story.
"Boys, the life of a scout is the most fascinating, as well as the mostdangerous one that I know of. It is a responsible one, too, for notunfrequently the safety and well-being of the entire army depends uponour reports. If, while we are roaming about the enemy's camp, we aredeceived in regard to their numbers and position, and our commandingofficer, judging by our reports, thinks himself able to surprise anddefeat them, and if, upon making the attack, he finds that he has beenmisled, we are responsible; at least that is the way I have alwayslooked at the matter; and many a time I have misrepresented cases, andhave, no doubt, been the cause of allowing the rebels to escape, whenthey might easily have been beaten, knowing that our hot-headedcommander would order an attack, no matter how small the chance forsuccess might be.
"Just before we started on the campaign that resulted in the capture ofFort Donelson, I was detailed to scout for head-quarters; and one day,while lying in my tent, heartily wishing that a move would be made whichwould put an end to the lazy life I was compelled to lead, one of thegeneral's staff-officers entered, accompanied by a youth, whom heintroduced to me as Mr. Henderson, and informed me that he was to be my'partner.'
"'He my partner!' I ejaculated. 'Is he a scout? What does he know aboutsoldiering?'
"The new-comer was rather below the medium height, very slimly built,with soft, white hands, that looked as though they had never beenaccustomed to hard work, and a smooth, beardless face. He seemed verymuch out of place among our rough soldiers.
"'I don't know much about scouting, that's a fact,' said he, with alaugh. 'But I know every inch of the country, and can use a rifle. Ihave been knocked about considerably since the war commenced, and myfather was hanged in Tennessee for being a Union man, and I suffered allsorts of hardships before I succeeded in making my escape.'
"The officer left us together, and, in spite of the chagrin I felt thata mere stripling had been sent to me for an associate, I was soon deeplyinterested in him, for with his almost childlike simplicity there wasmingled an air of confidence in his own powers which drew meirresistibly toward him. He told me his history, and when he dwelt onthe cruelty with which the rebels had treated Union men in Tennessee,and related, in a subdued voice, the particulars of his father's death,his slight frame quivered with excitement, and his fingers twitchedconvulsively, as if he felt the perpetrators of the deed in his grasp.He seemed to have the real grit in him, and I finally came to theconclusion that I had mistaken my man. I soon learned it was so, for,the very first time we got on a scout together, I found that he was madeof the right stuff, and I began to have a great deal of confidence in myyouthful companion. I don't believe he knew what fear was. He was asplendid shot and an excellent rider; in fact, he seemed to be out ofhis element unless he was in the saddle.
"The first time that Sam (for that was my companion's name) had a chanceto show his qualities was after the battle of Pittsburg Landing. Onenight, just after dark, we set out on horseback to watch the movementsof the enemy. We were dressed in our rebel uniform, and provided withpasses which would carry us through our lines. The night was dark andcloudy, but Sam, who knew the road like a book, took the lead. We hadproceeded in this manner about four miles, scarcely saying a word toeach other, when suddenly, as we came around a bend in the road, wefound ourselves close upon a picket station. Several men were lyingaround a fire, eating their supper; and the reason why we had notdiscovered them sooner was on account of the thick trees and bushes,which completely concealed the glare of the fire from any one comingdown the road. How we had succeeded in passing the sentries, which wereposted some distance from the station, is still a mystery to me. Eitherour advance had been so still that they had not heard us, or else thesentries were asleep; at any rate, we were in the enemy's lines beforewe knew it, and in something of a scrape. If we undertook to retreat,besides running the risk of being shot by the men at the fire, we shouldbe obliged to pass the sentries, and we might not succeed, for theclatter of our horses' hoofs would certainly alarm them. The only waywas to ride up to the fire and put a bold face on the matter, which wedid, the rebels supposing that, as we had passed the sentries, we wereall right. They at once took us for some of their scouts, and one ofthem inquired:
"'How are the Yanks?'
"'They're there,' I replied. 'And you'll have to haul in these picketposts before long, or I am mistaken.'
"'How is that sentry out there?' asked the lieutenant in command.
"'O, he's all right,' I answered, and seating myself at the fire, beganto pitch into the eatables. Sam followed my example, and we enjoyed avery good meal, after which we smoked a pipe, and talked with ourcompanions about the probability of soon thrashing the Yankees soundly,and wishing that we were in the Eastern army, that we might have thehonor of carrying the secesh rag into Philadelphia and all the otherlarge cities at the North. We also received some very valuableinformation in regard to the rebels and their intended movements; andfinally, concluding that the general must be looking for us, we bade thepickets good-by, mounted our horses, and galloped down the road towardthe rebel camp. As soon as we thought we had gone far enough to deceivethe pickets, we turned off from the road and started through the woods,intending to take a wide circuit, pass the pickets, and start back forour own camp. We stumbled about through the woods for nearly an hour,and finally struck a road that appeared to run at right angles with theone we had just left. This we followed at a rapid gallop for about amile, when Sam pointed out a light that appeared to be shining in thewindow of a house ahead of us. We at once determined to reconnoiter, androde slowly forward for that purpose, walking our horses on the grass atthe side of the road, so that our advance would be noiseless. We hadgone but a short distance when we were halted. To the challenge, 'Whocomes there?' Sam replied, 'Scouts,' and throwing me his rein, he swunghimself from his saddle, whispering:
"'Hold on a minute, Bill! Let me manage that fellow;' and before I couldsay a word he had disappeared in the darkness.
"Several moments passed, when I again heard his voice, and ridingforward, wondering how he had 'managed' the sentinel, I was surprised tosee him with a musket in his hand, pacing back and forth across theroad. I instantly understood what had transpired, and leading the horsescautiously into the bushes at the side of the road, I fastened themthere, and then returned to Sam.
"'I couldn't help it, Bill,' he whispered, as I came up. 'I meant tocapture him, and compel him to give us some information; but he foughtso desperately that I had to settle him to save myself.'
"'It can't be helped; such things are not uncommon in war times. Now youplay the part of sentry here until some one passes, and you can find outwhat the countersign is. Then I'll go up to the house and reconnoiter.'
"I then lay down by the side of the road, and in a few moments Samwhispered:
"'Bill, I wonder what's the number of this post?'
"'I'm sure I don't know,' I replied.
"'Well, how am I going to find out?' he inquired. 'If some one shouldhappen to come along without the countersign, and I should want to callthe corporal, I would be in a nice fix, wouldn't I?'
"Sam said this in such a perfectly cool and unconcerned manner, that Icould not help admiring him.
"Just then I heard a faint shout:
"'Twelve o'clock! Number one. All's well.'
"'There,' I whispered; 'the sentries are passing the call. Now looksharp.'
"The call passed the round of the sentinels, until number eight wascalled, but a short distance from us. Then came a pause.
"'Sam, you're number nine,' I hurriedly whispered.
"'Number nine; and all's well!' shouted Sam at the top of his lungs. 'Sofar, so good,' he continued, in a low voice. 'Now I guess we're allright. Halt!' he shouted, hearing the sound of horses' hoofs rapidlyadvancing. The horseman at once drew rein, and at Sam's challenge,answered:
"'Colonel Peckham.'
"'Dismount, Colonel Peckham, and give the c
ountersign.'
"'Look here, my man, just let me pass, will you? Don't detain me, for Iam on important business, and am in a great hurry.'
"'Halt,' shouted Sam again; 'dismount.'
"'I tell you I am Colonel Peckham, commanding----'
"'I don't care what you command. Just climb down off that horseinstantly, or I'll fire on you. You shouldn't go by me if you werePresident Davis himself.'
"The colonel, seeing that entreaty was in vain, reluctantly dismountedand gave the countersign, 'Virginia.'
"'The countersign is correct. Pass, Colonel Peckham,' said Sam, bringinghis musket promptly to a shoulder arms.
"After the rebel had mounted and disappeared, I whispered:
"'Now, Sam, I'm going up to that house. Keep a sharp look-out.'
"After shaking his hand I started toward the place where I had seen thelight. Walking carelessly up toward a group of soldiers who werelounging about on the ground, I glanced in at the window, and sawseveral officers seated around a table, apparently engaged in earnestdebate. I listened for a few moments to the conversation of the men, andfound that I was two miles inside of the rebel lines. This knowledge wassomething that would not have pleased me had I been alone, for I waswholly unacquainted with the country, but, knowing that I had a friendon whom I could rely, I looked upon it as merely a little difficulty,from which I could extricate myself as soon and as easily as I pleased.
"I lounged about, picking up a good deal of information, until I heardthe relief called, and knowing that, unless we beat a hasty retreat, wewould be discovered, I hastened back to the place where I had left Sam,and found him industriously pacing his beat. I was about to bring outthe horses, when we heard the clatter of hoofs coming up the road fromtoward the house, and I at once concealed myself. The answer to thechallenge was Colonel Peckham, who was returning to his command. As hewas about to pass, I, thinking that it would not look well to go back tothe camp empty-handed, sprang out of my concealment and seized hisreins, while Sam, who instantly comprehended what was going on, placedhis bayonet against his breast.
"'What means this?' asked the colonel.
"'Don't talk so much,' replied Sam. 'A blind man could see that you area prisoner. So hand over your weapons, and don't make any fuss.'
"As Sam spoke, he proceeded to 'sound' the colonel, and the searchresulted in the transfer of two revolvers to his belt. Then, throwingaway his musket and cartridge-box, he sprang upon his horse, which I hadby this time brought out, and, seizing the colonel's reins, we starteddown the road at a full gallop.
"We had proceeded scarcely a quarter of a mile when we heard severalmusket-shots behind us, and we knew that the relief had found No. 9 postvacant, and were alarming the camp. Sam, still holding fast to thecolonel's horse, at once turned off into the woods, through which wewith difficulty worked our way. At length, however, we reached an openfield, which we crossed at a gallop, and, leaping our horses over thefence, found ourselves in the road again. We had struck it just outsideof the rebel pickets, who, hearing us gallop away, fired at us; but thebullets all went wide of the mark, and in less than an hour we reachedour own camp, and the prisoner was delivered over to the general."
* * * * *
"I could relate many other adventures to you, but, as I have to go onguard at midnight, I must bid you good-night."
So saying, he arose from the ground, where he had been lying, and walkedoff toward his quarters. One by one the soldiers, who had gathered aboutto listen to his story, followed his example, and finally Frank and theensign who had assisted him in managing the battery, were left alone.Although they had been together but two days, they were on excellentterms with each other; and as Frank had learned that his companion hadrun by the batteries at Vicksburg, he was naturally anxious to hear thedetails. The ensign, at his urgent solicitation, then told the story ofhis thrilling adventures, which here follows.