372 Nortu CaroLina TROOPS, 186165.

like a thoroughbred on ree — : -. xe ne Sane
proached the two ships in close action, 1t ae ee
running into the jaws of destruction.
frightfully accurate ; se ee pane Ae Boe
ing shells flying over the rail and 1n faces.
fen dragging behind, managed to make sg ahs both popes
and felt as he blazed away with his heavy bow e stg" Ba!
about three hours of this ~ aie a Sue a ‘ in! re
Gettysburg pierced us in the starboar sepia Pe
water line, which sent a sharp quiver through the e : P
aused such a rush of water into the forehold that ou
ee immediately slackened, and the Lilian se - ine
time refused the helm. Ineffectual efforts were ae . 0) “e
up the hole with blankets, and within usta : sine ie
keen suspense, came the reluctant last order, ar : gens
Ease her! Stop her!” and the little vessel lay = ion —
like a dying stag surrounded by his foes. A nr een
Gettysburg was quickly alongside, joined later by oe nay
the Keystone State, and a Federal officer, arg ee
to the bridge and to our sullen and disguste pert
formally, declared the Lilian a prize to the one ri
and the ship’s company prisoners of war. Many o nh
ple then hastily prepared such valuables and clot ~~ =
could be readily taken with them, but, lost in contemp ote
of the novel and startling scene, I continued to gaze ges
wonder until we were unceremoniously hustled away to %
Keystone Staté, when I realized that I had left nearly every
i hind.
Begs weeks of imprisonment, sleeping upon a hard floor,
developed such holes in the posterior of my nether leer
that I was obliged to strike a hard bargain with our che

officer, Bill Jones, and envelop my attenuated extremities
in an old pair of his trousers intended for a person twice my

size. After the war was over, this worthy, while — .
the schooner Luola Murchason, made a formal deman ~
“twelve dollars for them pants,” which was promptly pat
with some mental reservation.

Some of our officers and men, including the Captain, —
kept on the Gettysburg, but the majority were transporte

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to the Keystone State, commanded by a gentleman of the old
navy, Pierce Crosby, who subsequently became an Admiral,
and who is, I believe, still living in Washington. I found
that my company was immediately desired in the ward-room,
where several impatient officers were waiting, with pencils in
hand, to ascertain their proportion of prize money; and
having no reason to conceal facts which would be inevitably
revealed later, I gave them, as purser, all the information
about our cargo necessary to make them, in turn, most cour-
teous and considerate in their treatment of myself and ship-
mates during our confinement on board. I was assigned
quarters in the ward-room, where I messed with the lieu-
tenants and paymaster; a comfortable hammock and a ser-
vant to attend to me, with every necessary convenience, made
me feel more like a guest than a prisoner, the only restric-
tion being between sunset and sunrise, during which I was
required to be below.

Shortly after our arrival on board the K. eystone State, our
company was mustered on deck and sent in squads of two for
examination by the commander below. The five pilots al-
ready referred to had agreed at the moment of surrender, to
personate firemen, and each passed inspection, apparently
without suspicion, until Tom Grissom, our regular pilot, was
called down with me. He was interrogated first, and in an-
swer to the question as to his place of residence ashore, re-
sponded promptly, to my amazement, “Smithville, North
Carolina.” :

I saw at once from the quick, searching look of our inquis-
itor, that our pilot had betrayed himself, it being well known
that Smithville was a pilot village, and special efforts having
been made by the United States authorities to apprehend the
Smithville pilots who were indispensable to the success of
blockade-running. Indeed, nearly every man examined, was
urged to inform on the ship’s pilot, our captors never dream-
ing we had no fewer than five on board. When, some weeks
after, nearly all of our people were released, Mr. Grissom,
as might have been expected, was detained and confined in
prison for several months. I did all I could to avert suspi-
cion from him during our united confinement, but it proved