llisions, would gather in little groups and talk of home,
friends, and the good time coming, when we would have one
good, square meal; arrange the bill of fare, comprising all
the delicacies that heart could wish, or a morbid mind
prompted by a starving stomach could conceive; lay plans for
escape and discuss the route to be followed; sing a few
hymns and the national airs, and wind up with 'We'll Hang
Jeff Davis on a Sour Apple Tree.'

"'There were with us two officers who, when we arrived at
Salisbury, had been in solitary confinement and whom the
rebels were holding as hostages for two guerillas whom Gen.
Burnside had condemned to be shot. When the removal of the
officers to Danville occurred, these two were released from
close confinement and sent on with us, and it was thought
they were no longer considered as hostages. They had planned
an escape and well nigh succeeded. They had dug a hole
through the brick wall, and passing into an adjoining
unoccupied building, cut through the floor, dug under the
stone foundation and were just coming through on the
outside, when some one in passing stepped on the thin crust
and fell in. Whether he or the men digging were the most
frightened it would be hard to tell. The next morning these
two who had worked so hard to regain their liberty were
taken out and probably placed in close confinement again.

"'After this attempt to escape, the rebel authorities made
an effort to rob us of everything, particularly
pocket-knives, watches, or any thing that could aid us to
escape. In this they were foiled. They made us all go to one
end of the room and placing a guard through the middle,
searched us one by one and passed us to the other side. If
one had a knife, watch or money, he had only to toss it over
to some one already searched, and when his turn came would
have nothing to show.

"'The guards would not allow us to stand by the windows, and
on one occasion, without warning, fired through a
second-story window and badly wounded an officer on the
third floor.

"'My shoes were nearly worn out when I was captured, and
soon became so worn that I could only keep _sole_ and _body_
together by cutting strings from the edge of the uppers and
lacing them together. These strings would wear