The Maine bugle ... campaign; 1-5 Jan. 1894-Oct. 1898 - Maine.gov

J-R/SON LIIE AND ESCAPE. 225
One night while we were at Camp Lawton, the Millen prison,
we were called up by the rebels, to come right out, for a cartel
of exchange had been effected for all prisoners that they could
deliver at Fort Jackson, bciovv Savannah, before dark the next
day, and if we hurried we would all get exchanged or paroled;
that all they (the rebels) wanted, was to get rid of us at any
price. Well, most of us swallowed that bait quick and rushed
out and aboard their old leaky freight cars and were soon on
the way to Savannah. It rained hard all day and we got thf)r-
oughly drenched through, but we were packed like sardines in
a box and were warm enough. Arrived at Savannah a little
before sunset. The cars stopped, and a mounted guard formed
each side of the cars. They saluted us with expressions like
these :
" You'll be in your own lines in two hours, boys," " We've
seen quite a number of you fellers off for home to-day, boys,"
" We've just come up from Fort Jackson where we took a lot
of your fellers down and saw them aboard one of your steamers."
Well, didn't we feel good. I rather guess we did. It would be
hard conveying to your mind how well we did feel. I doubt if
a believer ever experienced more ecstatic joy when he knew he
was about to be released from a bed of pain to enter the rest,
peace and joy of heaven than we poor wretches experienced
then. But why don't we start? What means this delay ? Time
seemed long, we were so eager to go to God's country and see
God's flag again, as many earnestly expressed it. An hour
passed. The mounted guards were relieved by infantry, and a
train of i)latforin cars ran alongside of us on another siding.
By and by the guards called to us, " Every man get a stick
of that cord wood and get on this train of flats." What did it
mean? What did we want of that wood down at Fort Jackson?
Some of the prisoners yelled " Another bull pen," " No exchange
this time," " More rebel lies." Our hearts sunk like lead. All
the bright virions of liberty were gone in an instant. Jiut hope
that can " hang men on an archer's arrow though it drop deep
poison " whispered to us that they must be having more trouble
with the Yankee army than they would admit. May be we will