A Rebellion in Dixie

by Harry Castlemon

The next thing was taking Mr. Smith and Bach Noble, and several other men who had been killed and wounded during the fight with the cavalry, to their homes. It was done with rather more of solemnity than had yet been displayed, and a long line followed after each man who had given up his life in defence of the flag. Mr. Sprague and Leon went with the man who had bequeathed them all he had in this world to give, and saw a grave dug where he had always said he would wish to be laid, and when the ceremony was over they came back to the hotel very much depressed in spirits. And it was a long time before they got over thinking about Mr. Smith. He was so lively and full of fun that he was sadly missed, but it was not long before something else demanded their attention. There was one thing that Leon was glad to see. Leonard Smith was not present at the funeral. It was not the man he cared for—it was the money he thought he had laid away, and which he believed he was in duty bound to get, seeing that Mr. Smith had no one else to bestow it upon. But he saw that he was not likely to get it by fair means, and so he kept out of the way.

There was another thing that happened during the week that made the Union men draw a long breath of relief. The boats which that squad had been sent up to build were all done, and now it needed nothing but a strong force of Confederates, much too large to be handled by them, to send the last man of them over to the island, where they would be comparatively safe. They were now ready to fight, and they didn’t care how soon it was forced upon them. During that week, too, a large number of men, probably two hundred of them in all, came in to give themselves up. Some of them were on foot, and others had their wagons along loaded with their families and household furniture. They had heard the particulars of the capture of that wagon-train, and believing that the men in Jones county were in earnest, and that they did not intend to be forced into the rebel army, they watched their opportunity and came in by night. And this wasn’t the worst of it. There were more came in every day, until Leon wondered where they should get food for them all.

“I don’t think the rebels knew how many fighting men there were about here,” said he. “We must have as many as twenty-five hundred men here.”

“Yes, and I guess if you had said double that you wouldn’t have been far out of the way,” said Ballard, who stuck close to the boys wherever they went. “It will take ten thousand men to whip us.”

“Do you suppose that Jeff Davis can send that number of men up here? We are only one little part of the Confederacy, and I should think he would want to save his men for something else.”

“He may now, but he won’t after a while. When Mobile becomes surrounded by Union troops, as she certainly will, he will need all the men he can get.”

And there was one other thing that happened during this week that caused Leon and Tom to look at each other in perfect astonishment. It proved that the chief men of the county, although they might act so very innocent, were not to be taken unawares. They had spies out. Some of them went to Mobile to see what they could find there that was worth looking at, especially to keep track of that strong force which they knew would be sent against them sooner or later, and the others went up into the interior of the State to keep a lookout for some more wagon-trains. These men took their lives in their hands, for every one of them that went into the Confederate lines was dressed in a rebel uniform. If they were caught and could not make a good excuse in regard to the regiment and company they belonged to, they would be hanged. Leon had been so very busy ever since he came into camp that he had not had time to learn all these things; but there was one other thing that he did learn which afforded him infinite gratification. It was what happened to Mr. Newman and family. They had been arrested as soon as Mr. Sprague found out, or rather mistrusted, that one of their number could tell more about Leon’s absence than any one else, and Bass Kennedy’s corn being thrown out of the calaboose, they were chucked in there, and guards placed over them to be sure that they stayed, too. Of course, Mr. Sprague was very much astonished when he learned that Dan had made a prisoner of Leon and had been wounded and captured by the pickets, and when he was brought to Ellisville he had him put into the jail with his father and mother. On the morning that the prisoners were sent away they were given a wagon to themselves and forwarded to the rebels in Mobile, and Leon never heard of them afterward. We may tell you, however, that Dan’s arm was amputated when he got among the doctors, and Cale never recovered his good looks. He looked as if his jaws were sunk in, and all the negro-twist he could get in them would not make them look any different.

By this time everything had been got ready for the visit of that force which was to crush out the rebellion of the Jones-County Confederacy. We don’t say that Mr. Sprague and the other chief men looked upon it as boys’ play, because they knew well enough what it meant. The actions of the regiment of cavalry which came in there, as well as the threats they had made that they were “going to sweep everything clean,” and that before night there wouldn’t be a Union man left, showed them that they couldn’t hope for any mercy. The head men of the Confederacy would be hanged, and the others would be forced into the rebel army. Mr. Sprague talked this all over with Leon, but the latter did not exhibit any signs of wavering.

“Well, I suppose if that is what we have got to contend with we can’t meet it any too soon,” said Leon, compressing his mouth firmly, as he always did whenever his courage was tested to the utmost. “I never thought that this thing was coming through all right. Such an exploit was never thought of before.”

“I know it; and that is what makes us think we shall come through with flying colors. There’s one thing about it: We won’t fight against our old flag.”