"We had got a mile further when we heard a noise. It was much as a pole might make knocked against the side of the boat. I knew thar was mischief now. 'Get in your poles, lads,' I said; 'four of you get out oars through the holes we have left for them atween the bags, and put your muskets close at hand; the other four get your muskets, and station yourselves two on each side.' We went on slowly now; we knew they war ahead of us, and that hurrying wouldn't do no good, and that we had got to fight anyhow. It might have been five minutes when thar was a flash from the bushes on either side--which we could scarce see in the darkness,--and fully a dozen muskets poured a volley into us, buckshot and ball, as we found on looking over the boat the next morning. It was a good job as we put them rice-bags in place, for I reckon thar wouldn't have been many of us up to fighting if they hadn't been thar. We had agreed not to fire back if we war fired at from the wood, for they couldn't do us much harm thar, and it was best to keep our fire for the boats which they war sure to have as well. "The moment the volley was fired two boats shot out, one from each side. 'Now, give it 'em,' says I. Up we jumped, four on each side, and poured our fire into the boats, which warn't twelve feet away. The darkies who war rowing had been told what to do, and, to do 'em justice, they did it well. Thar was a yell from the boats as we fired, for I reckon every shot told; but the way they had got brought 'em on, and their bows struck us just at the same moment. Then at it we went with our pistols as they crowded forward and tried to get on board. It was over in half a minute, for the four blacks had seized their poles, and, shoving them into the boats, two on each side, pushed 'em off. "I have heard pretty tall language on the Mississippi, but I never heard such volleys of cussing as came up from them boats; some of the men blazed away with thar guns, some shouted to others to row alongside, some who war hit yelled and cussed like fiends; and all this time we war lying behind the bags, ramming down fresh charges for the bare life. We gave 'em eight more shots before they could cast off the poles and come at us again. This time they came along more on the broadside, and five or six of 'em sprang on board; but we war ready with the butts of our rifles, and the blacks with thar cutlasses, and we cleared them off again. The four darkies had stuck to thar poles; one boat was shoved off, and one of the blacks run his pole right through the bottom of the other, and in a minute she went down.