Civil War Reminiscence
by Jessee G. Jones
Chapter 8 (written 1911-12, Knoxville, Texas)
Three minutes later pandamonium reigned in that house and the situation was beyond immediate comprehention not much less was the condition in woods my only advantage was I knew every inch of the woods. I knew that I would be pursued and my first consideration was to secure arms for defense, I knew where some had been stored before and if still there would supply my wants. With all haste I went and secured what I wanted comprising of two double barrel shot guns and two six shooters with plenty of ammunition. Some of the confederate boys were still in hiding places and the woods were being scouted for all. Very frequently the searchers werer in 40 or 50 yards of me and did not see me. I did not attempt to travel but to depend on dodging and hiding. The thorns, briars and many other kind of tormenters tore my clothes into threads. I also lost my hat and socks and had to walk on the tops of my boots while the saw briars shreaded the hide on my ankles. I neither had a needle, pin, pocket knife, pocket book nor a cent of money in this plight. I slept in a cornfield about 200 yards from where I made my break. I knew it would not do to try to travel at night all the ways out would be watched. At day break the second day I was one mile from where I started where I proposed to lie close and await developments and possed the day in mending my clothes by skining the bark of young hickories with my fingers and using locus thorns for needles, my success was astonishing from a servicable standpoint. From an artistic stand point reprehensible and disgusting. I lived on blackberries and green apples, the berries too ripe and the apples too green. I saw the soldiers hunting me and heard one of them inquire of another man as far from him as I was if I had been heard from or seen. The third morning I was a mile further and spent another day in hunger and seclusion. The fourth morning found me four miles off. The country now before me was very open and dangerous according to my tactics. The timber had been taken for the iron works with the exception of about 100 acres in the middle that was yet dense thicket. I was trying to go a due north course and the thickets was on my way, how to get to it without taking too much risk was what bothered me. After carefully surveying the surroundings made an effort to go when in fifty yards of it looked back and was houror stricken to see about 50 yankees on my persuit. Low and high places prevented them from seeing me enter the thicket. Instead of going in I droped down at the edge under alder bushes, weeds and briars, my greatest fear was their horses tramping on me. As I had supposed they circled the thicket one of them sat on his horse in ten feet of me but was in a short time moved further on. I had discovered in coming a gully that run pararallel to the rout I come, the mouth of which was close to me. I begun to crawfise and kept at it until I was certain that I could make better speed otherwise. After keeping the gully for a half hour I left it and went down on Cumberland river and decided to cross it. I found a slab in a drift and with hickory bark fastened my guns and amunition on it and proceeded to cross. Things were not as I had supposed, and I readily realized my mistake and decided at once to return to the other shore the same old puncheon was again called on to do service and I was soon across but had the misfortune to have my guns and amunition soaked with water. I droped the hole outfit in the river and went down the river trying to keep a northern course I rested that night some 8 or 10 miles from where I started, bright hopes were dawning.The above lines were the result of my thoughts after a close inspection of my suit of clothes. The bark threads had dried, twisted and kinked out of all shape and no one would have been able to judge the style I wore. It was necessary now for me to avoid all, whether friend or foe until I reached the place of destination, which was 35 or 40 miles ahead of me. If I reached that place I was sure of meeting a friend worthy of the name. I could make better time from that on through a little river 25 or 30 yards wide was to cross very often. Without hesitation I swam it and kept a straight direction north. At dark I discovered a big plain road runing exctly the direction I wanted to go. After resting a while and waiting for belated travelers to quit the road and yurn inyo their homes. I thought I would risk the road as it was so much smoother traveling. I passed two or three farm houses unobserved and done my first foraging at one of their milk houses which was well stocked with good goods. I traveled on 3 or 4 miles unobserved and unmolested and discovered my road was leading me down into a dense bottom working alive with mesquitos. I wanted day light but could not afford to wait for it among those blood suckers. I finally came to a little river which was from 30 to 40 yards wide as I did not see any ferryboat supposed it was a ford. As the night was dark I could not see across to know anythang about the getting out place. I had not long to tarry or to decide the question. I got a small pole and used as a walking stick keeping it before me in order to know when I could wade and when I had to swim. To my great surprize I found no place over 12 inches deep on this side there were no swampy bottom and after going a mile or two from the river was away from the mesquitos. I was now15 or 16 miles from where I started all o.k. so far. My first attention now was to do more reparing to my suit.
Source:Cheryl's Family Index | email to Cheryl Grubb
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