house; 19. Office James
River Towing Co.; 20. Gate; 21. Prisoners escaping; 22. West cellar.]

At daylight a plank was seen suspended on the outside of the east wall;
this was fastened by a blanket-rope to one of the window-bars, and was,
of course, a trick to mislead the Confederates. General John H. Winder,
then in charge of all the prisoners in the Confederacy, with his
headquarters in Richmond, was furious when the news reached him. After a
careful external examination of the building, and a talk, not of the
politest kind, with Major Turner, he reached the conclusion that such an
escape had but one explanation--the guards had been bribed. Accordingly
the sentinels on duty were marched off under arrest to Castle Thunder,
where they were locked up and searched for "greenbacks." The thousand
and more prisoners still in Libby were compensated, in a measure, for
their failure to escape by the panic they saw among the "Rebs."
Messengers and despatches were soon flying in all directions, and all
the horse, foot, and dragoons of Richmond were in pursuit of the
fugitives before noon. Only one man of the whole escaping party was
retaken inside of the city limits.[16] Of the 109 who got out that
night, 59 reached the Union lines, 48 were recaptured, and 2 were
drowned.

[Footnote 16: Captain Gates, of the 33d Ohio.]

Colonel Streight and several other officers who had been chosen by the
diggers of the tunnel to follow them out, in accordance with the
agreement already referred to, lay concealed for a week in a vacant
house, where they were fed by loyal friends, and escaped to the Federal
lines when the first excitement had abated.

After leaving Libby, Rose and Hamilton turned northward and cautiously
walked on a few squares, when suddenly they encountered some
Confederates who were guarding a military hospital. Hamilton retreated
quickly and ran off to the east; but Rose, who was a little in advance,
walked boldly by on the opposite walk, and was not challenged; and thus
the two friends separated.

Hamilton, after several days of wandering and fearful exposure, came
joyfully upon a Union picket squad, received the care he painfully
needed, and was soon on his happy journey home.

[Illustration: GROUND-PLAN OF LIBBY PRISON AND SURROUNDINGS.

A. Break in fireplace on floor above; B. End of tunnel; CCC. Course of
party escaping; D. Shed; E. Cook-room (abandoned Oct., '63); F.
Lumber-room; G. Office of James River Towing