CHAPTER IV.

In the Cotton-Shed at Camden-Pandemonium-Sent to the Hospital-On the Road Again-Guarded by BloodHounds--Prisoners Lassoed-Wading Through a Stream by Request-Arrival at Shreveport-Meeting Our Regiment-Homeward Bound-Our First Mail No Water Yankees "-Camp Ford-Home Again--Sentenced -Our New Cabin--Northers-Presidential ElectionTramping in the Ring.

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EPTEMBER 10th, we arrived at Camden, traveling the entire distance, sixty miles, in forty-eight hours. Here we were turned over to one of the meanest men in existence, whose name has slipped my memory. He was a Captain and Prison-Adjutant. Although he did not misuse me individually, I have seen him vent his spleen on more than one poor fellow. His chief amusement consisted in flogging slaves, who were found away from home without passes, putting Union soldiers in the stocks, or chaining them together in pairs, and making them work on the corduroy roads, near town. After he had taken our names, he put us in the second story of a long and very narrow ware-house, with only two windows at each end, for ventilation, in which were confined between two and three hundred prisoners. Quite a num

ber of them had also been re-captured in attempting to make their escape.

That night I could hardly find sufficient space on the floor to lie down, the room being so crowded, and the heat so oppressive that it was impossible to sleep. The next day they took all the worst men of their own army, whom they had confined for various offenses in the neighboring guardhouses, together with the Union prisoners and quite a number of slaves, that had attempted to escape from their masters, and put us all in a cotton-shed.

It was a low building, and occupied nearly an entire square, with a hollow court in the center. This was decidedly a hard place, as hot as an oven, with next to nothing to eat, and a very scanty allowance of warm river-water to drink. In the center of the shed, the cooking was done for all the inmates. We had but very few cooking utensils, therefore those who did not get to cook their rations by daylight, had to keep up the fires and do their cooking after nightfall. About one-fourth of the prisoners had a ball and chain to their legs, or were chained together in pairs. To awake during the night, and hear the yelling and cursing, the rattling of chains, and see the air filled with sparks and ashes, as the fires were stirred up by the cooks, was enough to make one believe that he was in Pandemonium.

With insufficient food, bad weather, and worn out from traveling so far, I was afraid it would bring on sickness, which, in such a place, would

be equal to a through ticket to eternity. I learned from the guards, that there was a Union hospital in town, containing several hundred wounded soldiers, that had been captured from Gen. Steele's command, in charge of two of our own Doctors. We managed to send a note out to the Surgeon in charge, telling him how we were situated; that we had no clothes fit to wear, and scarcely anything to eat. He sent us word to keep quiet; that he would have us paroled and sent to his hospital. Among other articles sent through the lines by our Government, for the use of the wounded, was a barrel of whisky. By using it occasionally among the officers in charge of us, he gained their consent to have Lieut. Srofe and myself paroled, and sent to the hospital.

When we reached the hospital, we thought our happiness was complete, we were so kindly greeted by all. We both received a suit of army blue, and plenty to eat. Here we met Maj. McCauley and his comrade, of whose capture, near Rock Comfort, Arkansas, the three slaves had previously informed us.

September 30th, all the Union prisoners that were able to travel, numbering about three hundred, were ordered to Shreveport, Louisiana, one hundred and ten miles distant. We were guarded by a company of cavalry, in command of Captain Montgomery, whose very name was a terror to the Union prisoners. I had heard of his brutal treatment of Federal soldiers, and was continually on

my guard, not to incur his displeasure. Behind the last file of prisoners rode five rebels, with lariats, with orders to lasso and drag every one by the neck that did not keep up with the cavalry guards.

Many a poor fellow was thus terribly punished for failing to keep ahead of the "ropers," as they were called. One young soldier was lassoed so often, and failing to travel with the rope around his neck, as fast as the mounted " ropers,” he was dragged so frequently that he died from the effects of it, about a week after he reached Camp Ford. Capt. Franz, of the 9th Wisconsin Vols., whose arm had been amputated but a short time previous, and who was still suffering from the effects of the operation, was unable to keep up one day. He was told by the "ropers" that, unless he marched faster, they would put the rope around his neck. He halted where he stood, and replied, that he was marching as fast as he could, and that they were welcome to do their worst-he could do no better. They made no reply, nor did they molest him after that. Capt. Franz informed me afterward, that he felt so miserable, that had they taken his life on the spot he would have considered it a deed of

mercy.

Behind the "ropers" were another set of tormentors, consisting of three rebels, with a pack of blood-hounds, to hunt down those who attempted to escape. It was almost impossible to get away from them, and yet two of our men were so foolhardy as to make the attempt. As soon as they

were missed, the rebels put the hounds on their trail, and in the course of four or five hours afterward the rebels, with the dogs, caught up with us again. When asked by their comrades whether they had caught the "Yankees," they replied that the dogs had killed one of them before they came up, and the other was so badly torn that they had to leave him in a hospital on the road! That was the last I ever heard of either of them.

When we halted for the night, after the first day's march from Camden, Capt. Montgomery laid out our camping-ground by driving stakes at the four corners. One of the prisoners, not knowing how the stakes came there, pulled one of them up to kindle a fire with. The Captain saw him in the act, and came rushing up, took the stake out of his hand, and without saying a word, struck him on the head with it and felled him to the ground.

It rained nearly all night, and as we had no protection from the weather, we spent a miserable night. The next morning it was very muddy traveling, and the small streams on the road were out of their banks. In trying to avoid wading through the water of a small stream, by crossing on a footlog by the road-side, a guard called me back, after I was half-way across, and ordered me to wade through the water in the middle of the road; at the same time he halted his horse and aimed his gun at me. Consequently, I hurried back and floundered through the water, to his entire satis