Answer. I think it was a few minutes after 4 o'clock in the morning that our pickets were driven in by the enemy. I was then sent out to look after them, and commenced skirmishing with them just at daylight. Before sun-up they had surrounded the fort. They then made three or four charges, two on horseback, I believe, but they were repulsed very easily. They then did not do anything but use their sharpshooters until about ten minutes before 11 o'clock, when they sent in a flag of truce demanding an unconditional surrender. The colonel went out and received the demand and brought it in. He then called the officers together and asked what we thought of the matter. He turned to Captain Harris, as the oldest officer, and asked him what we should do. The captain said he was for fighting, and I believe other officers there said "fight." The colonel then asked me to ride out with him, and I did so. On our way out I told the colonel that I thought we had the rebels whipped unless they had re-enforcements, which I did not think they had. They gave us fifteen minutes more to consider. Then some officers said they thought they saw artillery out there. Captain Beattie said if they had artillery they could whip us, but not without. The colonel then went out and made an unconditional surrender of the fort, about sixteen officers and about 500 men. I guess there were 300 men and officers out of the 500 who wanted to fight.
Question. Did you see any artillery?
Answer. No, sir.
Question. They had none there?
Answer. No, sir; I rode out as far as I dared go to see, and I did not see anything with the glass I had but an ambulance; there was no artillery there at all.
Question. To what do you attribute the surrender by Colonel Hawkins?
Answer. It is hard for me to make up my mind about that. Colonel Hawkins was a first lieutenant of a company in the Mexican war and I fought under him there, and I have fought under him in this war, and I never saw any cowardice about him before. I think this was one of the most cowardly surrenders there ever was. Still, I cannot think Colonel Hawkins is a coward; at least I never saw any show of cowardice in him before. I could see no reason for surrendering when we had but one man killed or hurt in the fort.
Question. You escaped from the enemy?
Answer. Yes, sir.
Question. How did you effect your escape?