All the conversation that I had with General Prentiss was no more than a Confederate spy might have had under the same circumstances.
Papers I very seldom carry about me when inside of the enemies lines; and in the absence of such evidence, it is sometimes very hard to convince one's own friends of his loyalty, and equally as hard for the enemy to make him out a spy.
CHAPTER XXI.
Return to the regiment—The Henry rifle—The march from Milliken's Bend—The tug of war—The army crosses the Mississippi—Capture of Port Gibson—Battle of Raymond—Amusing Capture—The charge on Jackson—Battle of Champion Hills—The rebel courier—Sharp-shooting—The gallant charge—The march to Vicksburg—The place besieged.
It was about the middle of the month of April that I returned to my regiment, which I found encamped at Berry's Landing, five miles above Lake Providence, La. It was while there that I had an opportunity of examining one of Henry's volcanic or repeating rifles, which are capable of discharging seventeen shots without reloading. The one that I saw was in the possession of the Captain of the steamboat Superior.
From my first enlistment I had possessed a strong desire to have a first-class rifle of the most modern improvement. The promise of such a gun was the principal condition on which I enlisted. It was several months after I enlisted before I received in exchange for my "handspike" (musket) the Enfield that was promised to me. My company officers, however, did all they could to furnish me with the promised gun. My long experience as a bear-hunter in the Western wilderness had made me expert with the rifle, and my desire to have a piece with which I could excel at sharp-shooting, if ever an opportunity offered, had become intense, and the organizing campaign against Vicksburg seemed to promise the desired opportunity.
I went to General Grant and told him about the gun, and that I wished to purchase it and carry it. He asked me if I thought I could carry so valuable a piece without losing it. "I think I can," was my reply.
"You lose mules, don't you?"