o eat with them. This he promised to do, and told
us to wait there until he toted the trunk over to his old grannies, and
when he came back he would whistle, to let us know it was him, and when
we answered the whistle, he would take us to the house and give us some
supper. He was soon back and we went with him to the edge of the woods,
near the shanty, when he again left us to make sure that everything was
all right. It was not long before we again heard the low, musical whistle,
which I answered, and he came up with two other negroes and took us to a
cabin, where a good fire was burning and an old black woman was cooking
some bacon and corn bread, or hoe cake, as they call it. While auntie was
getting our supper prepared, the three men went out to see about the
chickens.

It was not long before they were back, and had five nice fat fowl, which
they proceeded at once to dress for us, and by the time we had finished
our supper, which we greatly relished, the fowl were ready, the feathers
burned, and the floor carefully swept, so that every trace of the
transaction was removed. I had a silver quarter in my pocket which I gave
to aunty, and which she received with profuse expressions of joy and
gratitude. We staid with them until eleven o'clock, and although we only
walked eleven miles after that, I was completely used up the next morning
when we went into camp again. I cooked three of the chickens that day, and
we eat one for dinner and one for supper.

That night we walked twenty miles on the railroad, crossing four long iron
covered bridges, and went into camp in a large piece of woods some
distance back from the railroad, as daylight again warned us to seek
shelter.

About eight o'clock we made a fire and were roasting our last chicken,
making our breakfast in the meantime, on the one left from the night
before. I had laid aside my overcoat, and was therefore in the full dress
of a cavalry lieutenant, shoulder straps and all, and we were chatting
over our breakfast, when I heard the brush crackle close by, and looking
up we saw two white men within a few rods of us; one dressed in the
homespun usually worn by citizens in the south, and the other wearing the
uniform of a Confederate soldier.

I just had time to say to Alban, they are unarmed and I can handle one if
you can the other, when they came up to where we were sitting. They both
seemed a little embarrassed, and the situation was slightly embarrassing
to us.