After this I started along, and instead of keeping the mountain trail I took a cow trail that led far up on the mountain. It seemed that I never, in all of my journey, traveled harder to reach our lines or to get into the state of Tennessee than I did this night.
After traveling all night, until it broke day, I found myself on one of the highest pinnacles of this mountain, and, as I supposed, was looking down into Tennessee, for at a distance I could see a log house, so in this direction I made my course. After some traveling I came to the house, and what was my surprise to find myself back to the very house that I had stopped at and drank the milk. This place proved to belong to the father-in-law of the man who had done the shooting at me the day before. So I thought I could do no better than to stop, for at this time I had become very hungry. So I went in, and as I was seated at the table talking and telling of what had happened to me the day before, we heard the discharge of a gun several times, and these good people told me that the man who had betrayed me told them that he had wounded me, and intended to capture me the next day, and had started very early that morning to complete his work. While still eating, we could hear the discharge of his gun every little while. It made these people laugh to know that I was sitting at their table while my pursuer was on those high bluffs, pretending to be hunting to death that runaway Yankee.
Now, after I had finished eating I started once more to follow the mountain trail, as far as I dared to, and then laid by until night set in, for I had not traveled very much by day.
After bidding these kind friends good bye I started, hoping to get across these mountains without any very serious trouble. I had got where the mountain began to descend, when I began to have hopes that I would soon arrive where I could be safe in our lines.
Oh, how I longed to be at my own father’s fireside! These thoughts would, in my state of mind, cheer me up. After laying by until night set in I again started down this mountain side. The distance, I think I had been told, down this rugged Iron and Doe mountain was about eight miles. About one or two o’clock I found myself at the foot of the mountain and about a mile from it. I came to quite a respectable looking farm house and barn. Here I stopped and was told that I was now within the lines of Tennessee. This caused me to believe that my troubles were nearly at an end. But, alas! they were not.
I will soon tell you, dear reader, what occurred to me when I went to this house. They received me very kindly and after eating something they had me go to the barn and there remain until about noon. When the man wanted to know if I did not want to go to a corn husking bee, I told him that I did not dare to. He insisted on it so hard and my thinking that getting into Tennessee meant I was practically into our lines, or at least into a Union state, I made myself quite free, after some persuasion, to go with him. As soon as we arrived at the place, about two miles away, we found a great company of people there. They seemed to come and consult with my friend a good deal, and when supper was announced I told my friend that I must leave, for there were at least two rebels there who were home from the Southern army, and who seemed to be very inquisitive as to where I had come from. So I started back to my friend’s place and he stayed to see what he could learn in regard to what they intended to do. He came home about seven o’clock and came to the barn and called to me, but I was concealed in the straw in the barn loft and did not answer, for the reason that he told me not to reply to any one until I was sure that it was him. As soon as I knew it was him I came down and he told me that he had overheard the two rebels talking together and that they were coming to his place to capture me. He had a small lunch for me and I found to my sorrow that my troubles were not ended.
From this place I traveled all that night and so on until some days had passed, when I came at last to a northern range of the mountains. Now in Tennessee there are a great many ranges of mountains, one range after another. Well, I stopped at this man’s place and found a very warm friend and a good whole-souled Union man.
If I have not forgotten, it was about three days from the time I left the barn, of which I have spoken. The man’s name was John Robertson, and it appeared that he had a niece whom he told me he desired to send home across the mountains, over into what is called Carter county, Tennessee. Beyond Carter lay Knoxville, which I had been nearly forty days trying to reach. In the morning, in my sad condition of dress, I started across this mountain, with the young lady to guide me. On the way we sang national songs, and for about nine miles we spent the time very pleasantly. Long before night we came to the settlement on the other side of the mountain. This place is now called Carter county, Tennessee. Here at the first place we came to were Anderson’s two or three men in blue clothes. This young lady had not explained that there were eighteen of our soldiers cut off from our army at Knoxville, and when I saw them standing in front of the house I was about to flee to the mountains again, but the young lady just insisted that they were Union soldiers. So I went up to the house and was very kindly received, and here I must say I had one of the greatest experiences that I ever had in all my life. The next day after my arrival the Anderson people thought they would clean me up somewhat. So they had me take off my old drawers and shirt and placed on me some old twilled pants and a shirt, and I was set to work building a fire to clean and scald the old clothes that I had taken off. I say clothes—nothing but a part of a pair of drawers and a shirt that had seen more than six months’ service. Then talk of pleasure in a soldier’s life!
When I had just fairly got the water and the fire agoing there came up the main road, just a few rods away, the sound of many horsemen and the clatter of hoofs and a motion from the house for me to flee in the direction of the mountains. I started, not knowing whether to ever come back or not. I ran about a mile along the foot of the mountains, when I came to a man by the name of Sampson Robertson. I found that he was one of our men, but had been conscripted into the rebel service. He never went into the Southern army, but skulked for a living among his friends. He told me for the first time that this dash of rebels numbered over one hundred men, and that they had come over the mountain from the west, from Sullivan county, to capture our eighteen Union scouts, and that they intended to intercept them, for these rebels had already robbed the poor people of everything, even their bedding and household goods, and had killed an old man some sixty-two years old and burned the grist mill. If ever I wanted to help a handful of our poor soldiers, cut off from our army, it was now. So I went along to where I fell in with about seventeen of our men and boys, all told, and nine of the very best of these men allowed me to go along with them upon a bluff overlooking a run called Stony Creek, traveling down through the valley. This run was very deep and at least sixty yards across, and there was a small foot bridge, made of hewn timber, on small abutments. Just opposite this foot bridge there was a very large bluff or mountain, some three hundred feet high, and on this high elevated ridge these nine scouts had located themselves. I had the honor of being one to help in the little battle that was soon to come off. I had one of the old hero’s muskets. Now we could see the Johnnies coming. They had divided their force of one hundred men and were advancing right up to this foot bridge and began to cross it, when our boys opened fire on them from five shooting carbines. They told me to load the old musket well with buckshot and let them have it. Well, to tell the truth, I took too much powder from an old powder horn, for I put in nearly a handful, and also about a handful of buckshot. When this gun did go it would kick right smart, I reckoned, but still kept on loading and firing it, to the merriment of the other boys. But, oh, such fun! In a short time the rebels turned back and went away faster than they came. The Union boys, some of them, went on the mountain trail as the rebels were on their way back, and while they were leading or riding their horse the Union boys opened fire on them and nearly stampeded the whole force. There were only six or seven of our boys. We succeeded in escaping while they were trying to capture us. We had it from their own men that there were seven, I think, wounded and two killed. If I am not mistaken, this is what the rebels reported. They could not reach us from where they were.
Now after this great share in the battle I went back to the place that I had left, and stayed with a woman by the name of Urie Low. At this place I stayed for some four or five days. I made while here, I think, three pairs of shoes out of almost raw hide, working the hide just long enough to get the hair off and left them tan color.