EXECUTION OF UNION PRISONERS.
Resolved to Escape--Mode of Executing Prisoners--Removal of
Chain--Addition to our Numbers--Two Prisoners become Insane--Plan of
Escape--Proves a Failure--Fetters Inspected--Additional
Fetters--Handcuffs--A Spy in the Disguise of a Prisoner--Special
Police Guard on Duty--A Prisoner's Discovery--Divine Services--The
General Judgment--The Judge--The Laws--The Witnesses--The
Concourse--The Sentence.
On Friday morning, the twelfth of July, as I lay restless and sore,
endeavouring to find some position which would be sufficiently easy to
permit me to enjoy, even for a few moments, the benefit of "Tired nature's
sweet restorer, balmy sleep," the thought occurred that it would be well
to attempt an escape, though it should result in death from the fire of
the guards, which would be far preferable to death by strangling at the
rope's end, and in the presence of a large concourse of rebel enemies.
Their method of shooting was, to dig a hole, and make the victim sit with
his legs hanging in it. The soldiers would fire three balls through the
brain, and three through the heart; then the mangled and bleeding body
fell into the grave, and was immediately covered with earth. At first,
coffins were used, but of late, these had been dispensed with, owing to
the increased expense, and the increasing number of executions.
I had not long meditated upon this subject, when I arose, fully resolved
on death or liberty. My intentions were communicated to several prisoners,
who promised me all the aid in their power. My fetters were examined, and
it was concluded, that with proper instruments my bands could be divested
of the iron which secured the chain-rings. A long-handled iron spoon, a
knife, and an old file, were obtained, and two were detached at a time to
work on my fetters. We went to one side of the building, and a sufficient
number of prisoners stood in front of us, to prevent the guard from
noticing our proceedings. Our locations were changed frequently, to
prevent detection; and when an officer entered, labour was suspended till
his exit.
We called General Bragg, Robespierre; General Jordan, Marat; and General
Hardee, Danton. Several prisoners were led out and shot to-day. The
majority of them were Union men. Six Union men were committed to jail
to-day. The horrors of our situation were sufficient to render two of
these victims insane. A reign of terror had been inaugurated, only
equalled, in its appalling enormity, by the memorable French Revolution.
Spies and informers, in the pay of the Rebel government, prowl through the
country, using every artifice and strategy to lead Union men to criminate
themselves, after which they are dragged to prison and to death. The
cavalry dash through the country, burning cotton, carrying off the
property of loyal citizens, and committing depredations of every kind.
Several prisoners resolved to attempt an escape with me. Our plan was, to
bring in the axe with which we split wood for cooking, and raise a plank
in the floor, a sufficient number to stand around those who lifted it, to
prevent observation, and then make our way out among the guards, who were
off duty on the north side of the building. At this time there were three
guards in front of each door, and two on the south side of the building.
On the north side of the building, there were no guards on duty, for, if
the other three sides were securely guarded, the prisoners could not
escape on the north side. There were, however, several hundred guards,
who, when off duty, slept on this side of the prison. When their turn
came, they went on duty; and those who were relieved, came there to sleep.
They were coming and going all the time, and during the whole night, they
kept up an incessant noise.
After the unremitting labour of my friends during the day, I found that I
could slip my chain off and on at pleasure. The sun was now setting, but
the axe had not been brought in. At this time a guard was stationed in
each door; the favourable moment had passed; none dared to bring the axe
past the guard. While deliberating on the best course to pursue--as
raising a plank had proved a failure for the present--General Jordan and
Colonel Clare entered. I was standing with others in the middle of the
floor. General Jordan came directly to me; either accidentally or
intentionally, he held up a light to my face. "Ah! you are here yet," said
he. I gave an affirmative nod. "Well," said he to Colonel Clare, "I must
examine this fellow's irons." Putting his hand down, and ascertaining that
they had been tampered with, he endeavoured, ineffectually, to pull the
bands off; he did not notice that I could slip the chain-rings off. "These
irons," said he, "are very insecure; who helped you to put them in this
condition?" I made no reply. After waiting until he found I intended none,
he continued: "Colonel Clare, have these irons secured in the morning;
also put handcuffs on him, and chain him, so as to confine him to one
locality; the gallows shall not be cheated of their due." Having given
these orders, they passed out. As soon as they were gone, the prisoners
who had aided me crowded around, stating that they believed there was a
spy in the house, in the guise of a prisoner, and declaring that I must
escape that night, or it would be too late. All realized that on to-morrow
there would be no hope.
There were eleven guards on duty--three in front of each door, one in each
door, two on the south side of the building, and at night one passing back
and forth through the centre of the prison, which was lighted during the
whole night. There was also a special police guard on duty that night, as
five Federal prisoners, who remained in our prison until some formalities
were gone through with, would be sent in the morning to the prison at
Columbus, Mississippi, and it was feared they might attempt to escape ere
they were sent further south.
At this juncture, a young man ran up and informed me that he had made a
discovery which might result in my escape; I must go alone, however, and
though they would aid me, they would run great risk in doing so. Only
four could assist, and he would volunteer to be one of them. Several
others immediately volunteered, of whom three were selected by M----, and
the plan then communicated. At this moment, Captain Bruce announced that
the hour for divine worship had arrived. I asked my friends whether I
should plead indisposition, and dispense with the services for that time.
They replied that it might lead to suspicion, and advised me to give them
a short sermon. I went to my usual place of standing, clanking my chains
as heretofore. I give a synopsis of the sermon.
The text was 2 Cor. v. 10: "We must all appear before the judgment-seat of
Christ, that every one may receive the things done in his body, according
to that he hath done, whether it be good or bad."
The doctrine of a general judgment was revealed to mankind at a very early
period of the world's history. Enoch, the seventh from Adam, prophesied,
saying, "Behold the Lord cometh with ten thousand of his saints, to
execute judgment upon all, and to convince all that are ungodly among
them of all their ungodly deeds which they have ungodly committed, and of
all their hard speeches which ungodly sinners have spoken against him."
Job declares: "I know that my Redeemer liveth, and that he shall stand at
the latter day upon the earth." Daniel also speaks of a general judgment:
"I beheld till the thrones were cast down, and the Ancient of days did
sit, whose garment was white as snow, and the hair of his head like the
pure wool: his throne was like the fiery flame, and his wheels as burning
fire. A fiery stream issued and came forth from before him: thousand
thousands ministered unto him, and ten thousand times ten thousand stood
before him: the judgment was set, and the books were opened." The New
Testament is also explicit in its declarations that God hath appointed a
day in which he will judge the world in righteousness by that man whom he
hath ordained. The text declares that we must all appear before the
judgment-seat of Christ.
The scenes which will usher in the judgment of the great day will be of
the most magnificent character. "The heavens shall pass away with a great
noise, and the elements shall melt with fervent heat; the earth also, and
the works that are therein, shall be burned up." This does not indicate
annihilation. God will never annihilate any of his creatures, animate or
inanimate.
The inquiry is often made, what becomes of the soul after death, and where
does it await the general judgment? A sect called the Soul-sleepers, take
the position that the soul, after death, goes into a torpid state, like
bears in winter, and thus remains till the sounding of the Archangel's
trump. There is no Scripture to sustain this view, and it is only assumed,
to avoid the objection that God would not judge a soul, and send it to
reward or punishment, and then bring it back, to be again judged. That the
soul, at death, passes immediately into glory or torment, is proved by
many scriptures. Paul "desired to depart, and be with Christ, which was
far better," than remaining on earth. He declares that to be present with
the body, is to be absent from the Lord. The dying Stephen calls upon the
Lord Jesus to receive his spirit. These holy men would not thus have
spoken, if they supposed that ages must elapse ere they entered heaven.
God is not the God of the dead or torpid, but of the living. Moses and
Elias appeared on the mount of transfiguration in a state far from
torpidity. The dying thief received the promise, "This day shalt thou be
with me in paradise." No mention is made of Purgatory or torpidity. The
objector urges that paradise is not heaven. We are told that the river of
life flows from the throne of God, that the tree of life grows on both
sides of the river, and that the tree of life grows in the midst of the
paradise of God. The paradise of God is where he is seated on his throne,
which is heaven. Paradise is where Christ is. The thief would be with
Christ in paradise. He who regards the Lord Jesus as the Chief among ten
thousand, the One altogether lovely, will deem his presence heaven indeed.
As to the wicked, it is said of the rich man, that in hell he lifted up
his eyes, being in torment. If, after being judged, the souls of
believers, do pass immediately into glory, and the wicked into torment,
what use is there of another or general judgment. I reply, We are
responsible not only for our acts, but for the influence which those acts
exert through all time. Gibbon, Hume, Rosseau, Paine, and other infidel
writers, wrote works which, during the life of the authors, did great
evil. If those wicked men passed away from earth impenitent, they are now
suffering the vengeance of eternal fire. But the influence for evil, of
those wicked works, did not cease with the death of their authors.
Thousands of young men every year are led into pernicious and hurtful
errors by their perusal. At the general judgment, the accumulated guilt,
for the baleful influence exerted through their writings in all time, will
sink them deeper in the flames of perdition. The sainted Alexander, and
other pious men who are now in heaven, wrote many works whose influence
for good was great while their authors lived; and since their death they
are, and will continue to be, instrumental in the hand of God in turning
many to righteousness. All the good accomplished by their writings,
through all time, will, at the judgment, add to their exceeding and
eternal weight of glory.
In this life, we often see the righteous man contending with life's
unnumbered woes; all the dealings of Providence seem to be adverse. While
the wicked are in great power, they flourish in life, like the green
bay-tree, and have no bands in their death. These things are strange and
mysterious. We understand them not now; but we shall learn, in that great
day, when all mysteries are made plain, that God's dealings were just,
both with the righteous and the wicked.
The text declares that _we_ must all appear before the judgment-seat of
Christ. This _we_ includes all who are now within the sound of my voice,
and not only us, but all who live upon the face of the earth; and the
Archangel's trump will wake the pale nations of the dead, and summon them
to judgment. The dark domain of hell will be vacated, and the angels that
kept not their first estate, and are now reserved in chains of darkness,
will appear in the presence of the Judge. Heaven's holy inhabitants will
be present. Thus heaven, earth, and hell, will be represented in that
august assemblage. The scene will bear some resemblance to that which
takes place in our earthly courts. The Lord Jesus Christ will be the
Judge, and the angels and saints will be the jurors, who will consent to
and approve of the acts of the Judge. The angels will be the officers who
will summon, from the prison-house of hell, the devils, to the trial, and
also those wicked men who will call upon the rocks and mountains to fall
upon them, and hide them from the face of the Lamb. Nor, as is so often
the case with earthly officers, will any be able to elude the vigilance of
these. They will be clothed with ample power to compel the attendance of
all; none will escape. We _must all_ appear before the judgment-seat. As
in earthly courts, law is the basis of judgment, so we shall be judged
according to law in that day. The heathen will be judged by the law of
nature--the law written in their hearts, and on their consciences. The
light of nature teaches the being, wisdom, power, and goodness of God. For
a violation of this law, they will be beaten with few stripes. The Jews
will be judged by both the law of nature, which they have, in common with
the heathen and the Mosaic law. But we who live in the nineteenth century,
in the full blaze of gospel light, will be judged not only by the light of
nature and the Mosaic law, which we possess in common with the heathen and
the Jew, but also by the glorious gospel of the Son of God, which brought
life and immortality to light; and if condemned, how fearful our doom, who
are so highly favoured! In earthly courts, we are judged for our overt
acts alone; but in the court of heaven, the commandment is exceeding
broad; it reaches every thought. Our words, too, are taken into account.
We must give an account for every idle word. By our words, we shall be
justified, and by our words we shall be condemned. Our thoughts, our
words, our deeds, will all be taken into account.
As in our courts there are witnesses, so also there will be at the bar of
God. Our pious relatives and friends will bear this testimony, that they
have prayed with us and for us; that they had a deep concern for our
souls, and that we who are found on the left hand of the Judge, refused
all their counsel, and despised their admonitions. Ministers of the gospel
will testify that they came as ambassadors from the King of kings, and
beseeching you, in Christ's stead, to be reconciled to God, pointing to
the coming wrath, and warning you from that wrath to flee; and yet their
labour of love ye despised, and scorned the message from on high. The
Bible will be a witness against you. Its teachings are able to make wise
unto salvation. It is the chart which is given to guide us through this
wilderness-world, to fairer worlds on high. It tells of the Lamb of God,
who taketh away the sin of the world. It is truth without any mixture of
error, and yet you have despised this necessary revelation, and chosen to
perish, with the Word of Life open before you. God, the Father, will be a
swift witness against you. In the greatness of his love for you, in the
counsels of eternity, he devised the plan of salvation, and sent his only
begotten Son to suffer and die, that you might live, and yet you have
despised that love, and rejected that Saviour. God, the Son, will bear
this testimony, that he came from the shining abodes of glory, where
seraphim and cherubim fell prostrate at his feet, in humble adoration, and
emptying himself of his glory, bore all the ills of life--the persecutions
of wicked men, and the accursed death of the cross, that salvation might
be yours, and yet ye refused it, and trod the blood of the Son of God
under foot, and put him to an open shame. The Holy Spirit, the Third
Person of the adorable Trinity, will bear witness that he often knocked at
the door of your hearts for admittance; that he wooed you to embrace his
love, offering to abide with you for ever, and yet you rejected the offer,
and did despite to the Spirit of grace, till, in sorrow, he took his
everlasting flight.
The devil is now going about as a roaring lion, seeking whom he may
devour, and sometimes transforming himself into an angel of light. He is
tempting you to sin, by presenting before your minds the superior charms
of the riches and pleasures of earth, to things that are unseen and
eternal. He has no power to compel you to sin. His evil suggestions are
whispered in your oft too willing ears, and then it remains with you to
accept or reject. He has no power of compulsion. Your sin must be an act
of your own will, or it is not sin. When you consent to the wiles of this
arch enemy, and sin against God, remember that with eager desire and base
ingratitude he will fiercely accuse in the great day of God Almighty, and
urge these very sins of his suggestion as a reason why he should have you
to torment you for ever in the bottomless pit.
That internal monitor, that light which enlightens every man that cometh
into the world--the moral sense, or conscience--will be a swift witness
against you. By it you have been enlightened and warned; and in the case
of many who have denied a future state of punishment, the goadings of
remorse have convinced them that there is a hell, the kindlings of whose
fires they have felt in their own bosoms. Conscience will compel you to
confess that your doom is just, though for ever debarred from the joys and
happiness of heaven. O! my fellow-prisoners and travellers to the bar of
God, listen to her warning voice to-day, before it be too late, and you
are compelled mournfully to exclaim, "The harvest is past, the summer is
ended, and I am not saved!" The conscience of the sinner will be compelled
to admit the truth of the testimony. In earthly courts, oftentimes
witnesses are suborned, and their testimony false. Not so at the grand
assize. Not a scrap of false testimony will be admitted. The evidence will
be in truth, and the judgment in righteousness.
After all these scenes have occurred, the Judge will render a verdict, and
pronounce the sentence, which will be irreversible and eternal. With
regard to the righteous, though they have been guilty of many sins, both
of omission and commission, and have no merits of their own to plead, and
consider themselves justly obnoxious to eternal banishment, their
Advocate, the Lord Jesus Christ, in whom, while in the flesh, they
exercised a true and living faith, will now present them, clad in the
white robes of his perfect righteousness, faultless before his Father, and
they will now hear the welcome plaudit, "Come ye blessed, inherit the
kingdom prepared for you from the foundation of the world." But those on
the left hand, who all their life rejected the mercy offered--the great
salvation proffered without money and without price--will now hear the
dread sentence, "Depart, ye cursed, into everlasting fire, prepared for
the devil and his angels!"
O my dear, impenitent fellow-prisoners! how can ye take up your abode,
your eternal abode, in everlasting burnings? How can ye dwell with
devouring fire? How can ye endure everlasting destruction from the
presence of the Lord and the glory of his power, shut up for ever in the
fearful pit out of which there is no egress except for the vision of the
damned, and the smoke of its torment? Be wise to-day, 'tis madness to
defer. Procrastination is the thief of time. Delay is fraught with awful
danger. Trust not in promises of future amendment. The way to hell is
paved with good resolutions, which are never kept. The future convenient
season never arrives. Like Felix, we may tremble when the minister reasons
of a judgment to come; and like Agrippa, we may be almost persuaded to be
a Christian, and yet come short of the glory of God through
procrastination. Procrastination has populated hell. All the doomed and
damned from Christian lands are victims of this pernicious and destructive
wile of the devil. It is foolish to procrastinate. Though the Bible teems
with rich and glorious promises of a hundred-fold blessings in this life,
and eternal glory in the world to come, to those who break off their sins
by righteousness, and their transgressions by turning unto the Lord, yet
all these promises are limited to the present tense. There is not a single
blessing promised the future penitent. He procrastinates at the risk of
losing all. Behold, _now_ is the accepted time, and now is the day of
salvation. _To-day_ if ye will hear his voice, harden not your hearts.
"Ho, every one that thirsteth, _come_ ye to the waters; and he that hath
no money, _come_ ye, _buy_ and _eat_; yea, _come buy_ wine and milk
without money and without price." "Seek ye _first_ the kingdom of God and
his righteousness." "And the Spirit and the Bride say, _come_; let him
that heareth say, _come_; and let him that is athirst _come_: and
whosoever will, let him _take_ the water of life freely."
Choose ye _this day_ whom ye will serve. There is no warrant for deferring
till to-morrow the momentous and eternal interests of the immortal soul.
The shortness and uncertainty of life furnish a strong reason why we
should not procrastinate. In the Bible, life is compared to everything
that is swift, transient, and fleeting in its nature. It is compared to
the swoop of the eagle hasting to the prey; to the swift post, to the
bubble on the river. Life is compared in its duration to a year, a day,
and to nothing, yea, less than nothing, and vanity. All these comparisons
indicate that it is very brief and evanescent. We have no lease of life;
we hold it by a very slight tenure; and this is especially true of us in
our present condition. Confined in prison, some of us led to death every
day without a moment's warning, every evening I address some who, before
the next evening, are in eternity. Myself in chains, my life declared
forfeited, ought we not all to be deeply impressed with the necessity of
immediate preparation to meet our God? I feel that I am preaching as a
dying man to dying men, and I beseech you in Christ's stead, be ye
reconciled to God. Believe in the Lord Jesus Christ, and ye shall be
saved. Trust in him for salvation, for he is faithful who has promised.
God has never said to any, seek ye my face in vain. By the love and mercy
of God, by the terrors of the judgment, by the sympathy and compassion of
Jesus, I entreat you, my fellow-prisoners, to seek an interest, a present
interest, in the great salvation!
I close for the present. We shall never all engage in divine service
together again on earth. We separate--some to go to a distant prison, and
some to death. May God grant that when we are done with earthly scenes, we
may all meet in the realms of bliss, where there is in God's presence
fulness of joy, and at his right hand pleasures for evermore! And may the
love of God, the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ, and the communion of the
Holy Spirit, rest and abide with us, and all the Israel of God, now,
henceforth, and for ever, Amen!
The following hymn was then sung:
In the sun, and moon, and stars,
Signs and wonders there shall be;
Earth shall quake with inward wars,
Nations with perplexity.
Soon shall ocean's hoary deep,
Tossed with stronger tempests, rise;
Wilder storms the mountains sweep,
Louder thunders rock the skies.
Dread alarms shall shake the proud,
Pale amazement, restless fear;
And, amid the thunder-cloud,
Shall the Judge of men appear.
But though from his awful face,
Heaven shall fade, and earth shall fly,
Fear not ye, his chosen race,
Your redemption draweth nigh.
I preached longer than I had intended, having become so fully engrossed
with the subject as to forget my chains and my frustrated plans. My
fellow-prisoners were listening apparently with interest; great solemnity
prevailed, and penitential tears were flowing. It was evident that the
Spirit of the living God was in our midst; and though danger and death
were before our eyes, the consolations of the glorious gospel of the
blessed God caused our peace to flow like a river. The precious seed was
sown in tears. May we not entertain a good hope that he who cast the seed
into this soil, prepared by affliction, shall come again with rejoicing,
bringing his sheaves with him. By my side stood two in chains, who
appeared deeply moved. During the day I had conversed with them about
their souls. They expressed regret that they had not heretofore given this
matter the attention its importance demanded. Since their imprisonment,
however, they had been led to feel that they were great sinners, and had,
as they hoped, put their trust in Christ alone for salvation. I have since
learned that on the morrow they were shot.