第57章
THE DISCIPLINE in the prison at Elmira was not rigorous.The prisoners had to clean up the cells, halls, and yard, but the rest of their time they could spend as they liked.Some of those whose friends had money were able to live in comparative luxury, and to assist those who had no such resources; for throughout the war there was never any great difficulty in passing letters to and from the South.The line of frontier was enormous, and it was only at certain points that hostilities, were actively carried on, consequently letters and newspapers were freely passed, and money could be sent in the same way from one part of the country to another.
At certain hours of the day hawkers and vendors of such articles as were in most demand by the prisoners were allowed to enter the yard and to sell their wares to the Confederates.Spirits were not allowed to be carried in, but tobacco and all kinds of food were permitted to pass.Vincent had at Alexandria written a letter to his mother, and had given it to a man who represented that he made it his business to forward letters to an agent at Richmond, being paid for each letter the sum of a dollar on its delivery.Vincent therefore felt confident that the anxiety that would be felt at home when they learned that he was among the missing at the battle of Antietam would be relieved.
He was fairly supplied with money.He had, indeed, had several hundred dollars with him at the time he was captured; but these were entirely in Confederate notes, for which he got but half their value in Northern paper at Alexandria.He himself found the rations supplied in the prison ample, and was able to aid any of his fellow-prisoners in purchasing clothes to replace the rags they wore when captured.
One day Vincent strolled down as usual toward the gate, where, under the eye of the guard, a row of men and women, principally negroes and negresses, were sitting on the ground with their baskets in front of them containing tobacco, pipes, fruit, cakes, needles and thread, buttons, and a variety of other articles in demand, while a number of prisoners were bargaining and joking with them.Presently his eye fell upon a negro before whom was a great pile of watermelons.He started as he did so, for he at once recognized the well-known face of Dan.As soon as the negro saw that his master's eye had fallen upon him he began loudly praising the quality of his fruit.
"Here, massa officer, here berry fine melyons, ripe and sweet; no green trash; dis un good right through.Five cents each, sah.Berry cheap dese.""I expect they cost you nothing, Sambo," one of the Confederate soldiers said as he bought a melon."Got a neighbor's patch handy, eh?"Dan grinned at the joke, and then selecting another from the bottom of his pile in the basket, offered it to Vincent.
"Dis fine fruit, sah.Me sure you please with him!"Vincent took the melon and banded Dan five cents.A momentary glance was exchanged, and then he walked away and sat down in a quiet corner of the yard and cut open the melon.As he expected, he found a note rolled up in the center.A small piece of the rind had been cut out and the pulp removed for its reception.The bit of rind had then been carefully replaced so that the out would not be noticed without close inspection.It was from one of his fellow-officers, and was dated the day after his capture.He read as follows:
"My DEAR WINGFIELD.-We are all delighted this afternoon to hear that instead, as we had believed, of your being knocked on the head you are a prisoner among the Yanks.Several of us noticed you fall just as we halted at the river, and we all thought that from the way in which you fell you had been shot through the head or heart.However, there was no time to inquire in that terrific storm of shot and shell.In the morning when the burying parties went down we could find no signs of you, although we knew almost to a foot where you had fallen.
"We could only conclude at last that you had been carried off in the night by the Yanks, and as they would hardly take the trouble of carrying off a dead body, it occurred to us that you might after all be alive.So the colonel went to Lee, who at once sent a trumpeter with a flag down to the river to inquire, and we were all mightily pleased, as you may imagine, when he came back with the news that you were not only a prisoner, but unwounded, having been only stunned in some way.From the way you fell we suppose a round shot must have grazed your head; at least that is the only way we can account for it.
"Your horse came back unhurt to the troop, and will be well cared for until you rejoin us, which we hope will not be long.Your boy kept the camp awake last night with his howlings, and is at present almost out of his mind with delight.He tells me he has made up his mind to slip across the lines and make his way as a runaway to Alexandria, where you will, of course, be taken in the first place.
He says he's got some money of yours; but I have insisted on his taking another fifty dollars, which you can repay me when we next meet.As he will not have to ask for work, he may escape the usual lot of runaways, who are generally pounced upon and set to work on the fortifications of Alexandria and Washington.
"He intends to find out what prison you are taken to, and to follow you, with some vague idea of being able to aid you to escape.As he cannot write, he has asked me to write this letter to you, telling you what his idea is.He will give it to you when he finds an opportunity, and he wishes you to give him an answer, making any suggestion that may occur to you as to the best way of his setting about it.He says that he shall make acquaintances among the negroes North, and will find some one who will read your note to him and write you an answer.I have told him that if he is caught at the game he is likely to be inside a prison a bit longer than you are, even if worse doesn't befall him.However, he makes light of this, and is bent upon carrying out his plans, and I can only hope he will succeed.