. Historical sketches of the Revolutionary and Civil Wars : with an account of author's desperate leap from a swiftly moving train of cars, and a fatiguing tramp of 1,000 miles through three Confederate states, in making his escape from a prison-pen . gs as to what theresult of our frightful leap might be. But the intense excite-ment into which our minds had been thrown—the resolve toseek home and friends and liberty overcame the sense of peril,and the instant Captain Todd gave the signal we each sprangfrom the swiftly-moving car, and, for the time at least, werefree. We had no leisure after r
. Historical sketches of the Revolutionary and Civil Wars : with an account of author's desperate leap from a swiftly moving train of cars, and a fatiguing tramp of 1,000 miles through three Confederate states, in making his escape from a prison-pen . gs as to what theresult of our frightful leap might be. But the intense excite-ment into which our minds had been thrown—the resolve toseek home and friends and liberty overcame the sense of peril,and the instant Captain Todd gave the signal we each sprangfrom the swiftly-moving car, and, for the time at least, werefree. We had no leisure after reaching terra firma to reflect uponthe terrors of our new situation. Fortune so far had favored us—this was sufficient. But those rifle flashes (we could not hearthe reports, so distant was the train) warned us that if we wouldhave perfect freedom much remained to be done and donequickly. It was while contemplating the necessity of entering a darkand forbidding-looking cypress swamp to escape our enemiesthat we heard the rush and roar of an approaching storm. Thetrees set up a mournful howling, while the winds shrieked as ifunder the influence of a demon. They were merely the pre-cursors of the fearful night through which we were compelled. REVOLUTIONARY AND CIVIL WARS. 133 to pass. As we dashed into the swamp, veiled with Cimmeriandarkness, we encountered danger from falling branches anduprooted trees. While the tornado was a huge terror, it wasnothing compared to the dread we had for the fierce dogs nowon our trail, and those whose excited voices we could hear onthe edge of the swamp—men who were seeking our recapture. It was only after gaining the covert of the swamp whichlined the right bank of the Watteree River that I reflected uponthe manifold dangers I had just escaped, upon the many chancesof fortune which had turned out favorably for me, and upon theliberty I had panted for and was beginning to enjoy. The swamp we had hastily entered was not such a resortas gent
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