STORY OF AN ESCAPE FROM PRISON

Ashburton Guardian, Volume VII, Issue 1707, 9 November 1887, Page 4

STORY OF AN ESCAPE FROM PRISON

.-. *......-.-» ♦ — "To be shot m the morning at four o'clock ! " This was the refrain that k*pt linging through my mind since the aforesaid sentence had boeo passer] on me, a soldier of the Confederate array, caught only a few hours before within the lines of the Fedora 1 cm?. I had been captured, tried, aud summarily senteneed, and now kid oa a heap of straw Jn th« old hat, bem waning -my unhappy fate. My t!mber-built prison wa? paved with some fbas, and bad evideDt'y been ttsed as a atablo, a large iron grating m the stone floor being the ontlot for atable refuse Suddenly »b I wos lying ob my heap of s'r^w, I heard tho sound of trickling water. This set *ac tmnkloff, and the idea flashed scroes co sa to the probability cf my prison being coateoted m any way with the river. Again Biking nsa of the friendly cpeDings m the wall, I saw, to my j y, a gully about three feet wide *nd four feet dof p, loading frcra the river, directly under the nhantr, firmlDc'* xwUtal drain. The thought cf a'p.o»ibla escape gave tew life to my e'nk ng; spirits. The grating wa* my fi'Bt thought, and on looking down I saw the water flowing beneath me. Cautiously I tried to raise the grating, bat could obtain b 6 hand-hold, bo set to work on the hird earth between It and the surrounding itonei. I worked till my fingers were tare and bleeding, and st length managed to get » £rm grip of the Iron. I was on the point of raising the grating, but, bearing my prißon door open, I htd just time and presence of mind to fall flit and feign sleep, cohering with my body the dirt I raked ont, when the guard looked la, and seemingly satisfied, withdrew. As soon aa I could recover my shsken serves, I raised the grating, and qaletly •lipped down into the slimy stream. The advisability of putting off my attempt till night occurred to me, but again the lenience : •' To be shot m the morning i»t fonr o'clock •" re-echoed through my brain and replacing the grating after me, i crept cautiously along through mud ana filth towards the river, the high banks of the gnlly completely screening me from observation Nearing the river the water got deeper, *nd the banks of the gully wider apart, and I Baw to my dismay the ctrnp was sltuatedirlght along the bank of the river ; escape Beemed impossible, and I resolved reluctantly to defer my attempt till night. I had commenced to retrace ay steps to the prißon, wlen, o«tchlDg light of an old basket among the garbage that lined the baDks of the gully, I seized it, struck with a eudden idea, and turned once more towardß the river. All at once a tremendous tumult rent the air, ; and I knew my escape was dhcovertd, 1 now was the time to put m operation the I happy thought connected with the basket j Beaching the river, I $ ornc o! it bottom upwards, and sent it fl ating into deep water, then dived down, came up with my bead inside it, and quietly 6Wam olong, letting it seem to float with the natural action of the tide. From my backet I could see tho whole camp m an uproar, horsemen Bcouring the surrounding country, soldiers rushing here and there, aeftrohing the banks of gully and river, and little thinking the innocent looking basket, floating quietly by the entire length of the camp, concealed the cause «f the whole uproar. That evening round cur own camp fire, few would associate the dejected being of a few hours ago, with the bright animated soldier who was relating, with great gusto, the story of his escape m a basket. HoLLOWAT'S PILLB AND OINTKEXT. — ThO Combined ill-effects of over-crowding, sedentary occupations, and monotony of life are only too well-known to those who have to pass the best part of their lives laboring m factories and crowded workrooms. The compulsory confinement weakens the general health and induces ohronio constipation, indigestion, and various forms of skin disease. Holloway'e remedies are of priceless value to persona of this class, for they can be used without entailing lots of wprk. being purely vegetable m their composition, and consequently act without harshness on the most delicaie system. The experience of more than forty years proves that no means surpass Hollo way's remedies for curing bad legs, bad breasts, piles, and wounds of all inds.