CHAPTER VIII.

Lake Leman lies by Chillon's walls,

A thousand feet in depth below
Its massy. waters meet and flow.

Byron.

Fort Delaware is situated on an island near the mouth of the Delaware river. During the war a ferry-boat plied between the island and the mainland at Delaware city. While I was a prisoner there, the Confederate officers were confined in the interior of the fort. The rooms occupied by the prisoners opened on a long hall, which led to a broad stairway leading to the ground floor. At the head of this stairway sentinels were placed to confine us to the apartments above. There was also a stairway leading above to the parapet. From this parapet to the water below was probably forty feet. The windows of our apartments opened on the water and were secured with iron bars. The rooms were comfortable, though scant of furniture. The prisoners had free access to each other, and visiting was allowed at all times. The number confined in the interior of the fort during my stay did not exceed twenty or fall below twelve. There was on duty at the fort. a German regiment, and those with whom we were thrown in contact seemed clever enough. Some of the Federal officers paid us frequent visits, and were, with a few exceptions, kind and considerate. Colonel Perkins was commandant, and his clerk, Gemmil, was in our quarters daily and entered into many of our sports. Through him our mail was sent and received, it being inspected by him in going out and coming in, to prevent contraband matters. No rations were furnished us, but, in lieu thereof, a commutation of sixteen cents a day, with liberty to buy. We divided into messes, and our

mess had as cook one of our men, held on some trumped-up charge, and who was glad to get on the interior of the fort, as those without were treated very harshly. Our townsman, J. Ogden Murray, was our commissary-general, and with a little aid to our commutation money from our individual means and the charity of lady friends, we lived, compared with those at other prisons, comfortably..

We varied the monotony of prison with cards, drafts, chess and backgammon, which aided materially in relieving the tedium. The few books in our store were eagerly devoured, and the Bible was not forgotten. At times we played pranks of various sorts on each other. One of our prisoners, Lieutenant Tormey, of the First Maryland, was quite a conceited youth, and spent much of his time in regaling us with episodes concerning his many sweethearts in Baltimore. Murray and myself, by treasuring up Tormey's revelations, soon knew Tormey's sweetheart about as well as Tormey himself, and conceived the idea of personating her and inditing to Tormey a fervent epistle. With the aid of Gemmil, who readily entered into the scheme, we wrote the letter, got Gemmil to copy, stamp, and deliver it to Tormey. How Tormey's spirits revived on the reception of it! He was so full of it he could not keep the secret, so he made us his confidants. He was kept busy several days composing an answer, which he finally delivered to Gemmil for inspection and mail. Gemmil gave us a copy and mailed the original, but whether the young lady received it or not we never knew. She certainly did not answer it, but we did, keeping up a brisk correspondence for some weeks, and doing Tormey as much good as if the letters had been genuine. He did not discover the cheat until a few days before our departure, and, good-natured soul that he was, took it all very kindly. Not so with Lieutenant Purvis, upon whom we played a similar joke, who, when he found us out, refused to speak to Murray, my father, or myself, until the day of our departure, when he relented and forgave us.

In the last chapter I quoted my father's diary to March 10th. I will now resume and continue to the date of our separation:

March 11th.-Ground covered with snow. No news.

March 12th.-Colonel Perkins sent for me to-day relative to the removal of all privates from our quarters into the outer barracks. I tried the Mason on him to-day, and he responded promptly.

March 13th. Two of our officers left us for Fort McHenry to be exchanged-Captain Cooper and Lieutenant Milam. They took leave of us at 7 P. M. The remaining officers much dejected at being left behind.

March 14th.-Arose about 7 A. M. Made up my fire and bed, took a good bath and dressed. Our house looks somewhat deserted this morning. Wrote to Misses Heiskell and Clements, two ladies of Philadelphia, who had sent me their photographs. Got a bottle of cod-liver oil and whiskey from surgeon.

March 15th. My thirteenth Sunday in prison. Snowing fast.

March 16th.-Received box from my friend, Miss Cheeseborough, containing suit of clothes for George, pair of shoes, travelling shirt, two pairs of socks, two towels, chest protector, necktie, and ball of soap, and for me 40 paper collars, two silk handkerchiefs, pair of suspenders, two crash towels, five pairs shoestrings, teapot, tea, sugar, crackers, butter and jelly. Provost-Marshal Harris retained George's travelling shirt, necktie, and chest protector. He also retained all the articles sent Murray, Ryle, Blanton, Marberry, Cooper, Milam, and Purvis. Captain Marberry received a very nice box of eatables from Miss Warner, of Tennessee. Received letter from my wife to-day.

March 17th.-Colonel Perkins permitted George to have the travelling shirt made for him by Miss Maria Cheeseborough. Wrote home.

March 18th. The boys sold Lieutenant Purvis badly. He wrote to Mrs. Beall some days ago and expressed much affection for her. They answered the letter for her and feigned that it was a proposal of marriage, and that she accepted his offer. He answered the letter, explaining to her that she had misconstrued his language and intentions; that they were not those of love, but of esteem. After his letter had been forwarded to Mrs. Beall, he discovered it was a joke of the boys. Permission was granted Morrison, Murray, George, and myself to visit Mrs. Weaver and Mrs. Hays, from Baltimore, at the Colonel's office. I did not avail myself of the privilege. The others did. The ladies brought them a box of provisions.

March 19th.-George wrote to Miss Maria Cheeseborough yesterday. They numbered our rooms. My number is 6. We walked out this evening on the island.

March 20.-Arose and made the fire, as usual, and made up my bed. George and Murray in bed asleep. Purvis received a box of things, eatables, etc., from Mrs. James, of Baltimore. Received letter from my wife to-day. News from my county gloomy.

March 21.-As usual, had to make up my fire. George and Murray in bed.

March 22.-We walked out on the parapet in the afterA beautiful day.

noon.

March 23-Arose and made my fire. George and Murray in bed. Received a letter from Mrs. Eliza Cheeseborough, of Philadelphia. It breathes the language of true and disinterested friendship. I cannot express the deep gratitude I owe to this strange lady and her two daughters for their great kindness to me since I have been in prison in this fort. March 24. All hands washing out room. No news to-day. Walked out on island.

March 25.-Suffering with rheumatism. Held court today and convicted Murray and Kyle of improper conduct. Received a letter from my nephew, Captain Thomas G. Bay