imated conference, in which I gave some of my
own experience, in and out of rebel prisons, telling them of the
hardships and exciting scenes through which I and my comrades had passed
in trying to reach our lines, of the difficulties we had encountered, and
the privations we had been obliged to endure. To get out of prison was not
a difficult task for one or two, but a successful prison delivery was
quite another thing to accomplish.

Two hundred officers, each having ideas of their own, were harder to
control than five times that number of enlisted men, who had been
disciplined to obey; and as no one had any authority to command, or
control the actions, of his fellow officers, we lacked the greatest
essential to success--organization. Various plans were suggested and
discussed, but none which seemed to promise success, appeared to be
practical just at that time. Almost daily conferences were held, but the
prevailing opinion seemed to be, that an attempted general outbreak,
without thorough organization, would prove disasterous, and only end in an
unnecessary sacrifice of life, and almost certain failure.

CHAPTER XXII.

DANVILLE PRISON--A COLD WINTER--DOUBLE-QUICKING AROUND THE ROOM TO KEEP
WARM--EXCITEMENT CAUSED BY THE ARRIVAL OF FRESH TROOPS--THEY STACK ARMS IN
FRONT OF OUR PRISON--PLANS FOR ESCAPE.

Danville in 1864-5 was a town of considerable importance to the
Confederacy, being the base of supplies for the Confederate army at
Richmond and Petersburg. There were three or four military prisons there,
in which were confined about two thousand enlisted men, captured from the
Union forces, and four hundred officers. They were all confined in tobacco
warehouses in different parts of the city, the officers being separate
from the enlisted men.

The prison in which the officers were confined, was a three story tobacco
warehouse, 40x100 feet, near the River Dan. The windows were securely
grated with iron bars, and the whole building was rendered secure by heavy
oaken doors.

The building faced the east, and a street ran in front and, also, one on
the south side. In front, and on the south side, sentries were pacing up
and down, night and day; and there were also two sentries stationed on
the ground floor, inside, one along the south side, and the other across
the west end.

The sinks used by the prisoners, were just outside the west end of the
building, and were surrounded by a high board or plank fence.