they were killed by the Yankee prisoners or had
been induced by them to desert, the latter however, is the most probable,
but as I have never heard from any of them since, I am equally in the dark
concerning the affair, and, like the Lieutenant, can only guess at what
took place.

The next day we were notified to be ready that evening, and that night we
were counted out and placed on board the cars. Instead of taking us to
Charleston, as we had been told they would, we were stopped at Savannah,
and placed in the United States marine hospital yard, around which a
stockade had been built, thus spoiling our plans of escape. "The best laid
plans of mice and men aft gang aglee." This was a yard of about two acres,
quite well shaded with live oak trees, some of which grew to enormous
dimensions, one on the south side, spreading over nearly or quite a
hundred feet of ground. Here we drew rations of fresh beef, the first in
many months, and our rations were generally better than we had heretofore
received. We were strictly guarded, but, with few exceptions, were well
treated. Colonel Wayne, of the 1st Georgia Regulars, was in command, who
designated Colonel F. C. Miller, 147th New York, as senior officer of the
camp, and all communications were forwarded through him.

Of course almost the first thing to do when we had got fairly settled in a
new prison, was to commence a tunnel. Two were started, and had progressed
nearly to completion, when as in Macon, these were both discovered and
filled up. Another was soon started in a different direction, and was
already to open, which would have given egress to half the camp, when, by
a most unfortunate accident, it was discovered on the morning preceding
the night we were to make the break. We had reached within a few inches of
the surface, and ten minutes' work would complete the opening, but it was
so near daylight we thought we would be already that night, and get a good
early start the next.

That morning, however, as the sentry was watching a cow cropping the grass
just outside the camp, what was his surprise to see her suddenly break
through and nearly disappear. Of course an investigation showed what had
been done, and again had our toil been in vain--no, not in vain, for it
had kept us employed, and diverted our minds from the misery of our
situation.

While in Savannah, we built ourselves what is known as the old fashioned
Dutch oven, in which we could bake our pomes. To t