The Strange Story of Harper's Ferry, with Legends of the Surrounding CountryBarry, Joseph
History
The Strange Story of Harper's Ferry, with Legends of the Surrounding Country
Barry, Joseph
Harpers Ferry (W. Va.) -- History; Harpers Ferry (W. Va.) -- History -- John Brown's Raid, 1859
it and, lo, when Mr. Collis showed the package and opened it, instead of
an Odd Fellow's card, it turned out to be a daguerreotype likeness of
one of that gentleman's lady friends which, through some inadvertence,
Mr. Collis had substituted for what he had intended to guard with so
much care. The Major taking this mistake for a wilful personal insult,
stormed wildly and remanded the six prisoners for further trial, when
they were confined with other captives in Eader's hotel at Sandy Hook.
It will be believed that, under the circumstances, they were a gloomy
party and, in view of the probability that things would grow worse as
the night advanced, the author uttered a pious ejaculation, expressing a
wish that he had the freedom of Sandy Hook for half an hour to improve
the commissariat of the prisoners which was rather scant and entirely
wanting in that article so indispensable to people in trouble and to
many under any circumstances--whiskey. As luck would have it, the prayer
reached the ear of the sentinel at the prison door, who was a six-foot
representative of that beautiful island which is so touchingly described
by one of its inspired sons as:
"Poor, dear, ould Ireland, that illigent place
Where whiskey's for nothing and a beating for less."
The word "whiskey" was the sesame to the sentinel's heart. He looked
around cautiously to see if the officer of the guard was near and, the
coast being clear, he opened the door and, in a confidential way,
remarked that he supposed the speaker was a =dacent= boy who would do
the =clane= thing and that he--the sentinel--would run the risk of
letting him out =on= parole of honor for half an hour. The offer was
accepted joyfully and, in an incredibly short time, the author, who in
those days, "knew all the ropes," returned with a load of crackers,
cheese and sausages, pipes and tobacco, and the main desideratum, a very
corpulent bottle of "tangle foot," a very appropriate name for the
particular brand of Sandy Hook whiskey. With these refreshments and a
greasy pack of cards, the night wore away pleasantly and, before
morning, the Irish sentinel was the jolliest man of the party for, on
every passage of the bottle, his services were gratefully remembered and
rewarded with a jorum. When the time came for relieving the guard the
sentinel was too drunk to stand upright and present arms and the
sergeant who, too, was a good fellow or who was, perhaps, himself drunk,
did not change the guard. Anyway, the jolly Irishman was left at the
post 'till morning and he did not complain of the hardship of losing his
sleep. The greater number of his prisoners were too top-heavy to make
their escape, even if they were inclined to play false with their
indulgent keeper. Next day they were examined again and subjected to
various sentences according to their supposed delinquencies or their
ability to do mischief. The hapless author was condemned to banishment
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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