Page:Southern Historical Society Papers volume 39.djvu/139

 Defence of Spanish Fort. ' 127

one or two planks wide. At the word, all shoes and boots were off and we stood in our stocking or naked feet in single line upon that narrow treadway. And then, after orders to keep our guns on the off-side from the enemy, to prevent their glist- ening being noticed (for artillerists though we were, we still had our infantry accoutrements), and after orders not to whisper a word on pain of being shot, we went forth, literally not knowing whither we were going.

IN THE TREADWAY.

The treadway first debouched upon the beach, then turning to the right it went up the shore for quite a distance; just how far I cannot say, but I know we passed so close to the enemy's pickets stationed in the marsh that we could hear them talking, and right under the nose of their battery. Finally the treadway turned and struck out into the bay. The water was shallow and we walked just above the water's surface. Suddenly a shot came, it was from that battery. Imagine our consternation. But it was not repeated for some time. It was evident they did not see us, but were merely firing "periodically" across what they supposed to be the channel, in order to prevent any succor reaching us. The very last thing they were thinking of was our attempting to escape.

FLOUNDERING IN THE MUD.

We came to the end of that treadway at last. It ended on one of those very marshes by which my comrade "Tony" and I had planned to escape. A chain of them, as I had said, ran up the bay some six or eight hundred yards from the shore. The channel was outside of them, and when we jumped off the tread- way on to the island where it terminated, there, out in the water, were the dusky forms of several gunboats waiting to carry us away. But would I ever forget those few minutes on that island ? When I jumped from the treadway I sank to my waist in mud. It was a bog. Every one sank more or less deep. But our sit- uation gave us frantic energy. There we were right under the