ur plan. I
expected to be arrested before morning, but hoped it would be after our
party. However, we soldiers have to go where ordered. We shall be thrown
into prison for a time, but when this detective or secret service work
on which we are engaged is done, we will take pleasure in calling upon
you again, wearing such laurels as we may win. We bid you good-night,
and wish you much happiness." They all shook hands with us, evidently
believing what I had said, and even the sergeant seemed to take it in,
for, after the crowd had gone, the sergeant said, "You will excuse me,
kernel, for what I have done. I didn't know about any 'plan.' All I knew
was dat the provost-marshal told me to go up to Carrollton and pull
dem recruits dat was camping at de beer garden, and fotch 'em to de
guard-house." I told him he did perfectly right, and then we recruits
packed up our things and marched with the colored soldiers to New
Orleans, about six miles, and we slept in the guard-house. The next
morning the provost-marshal called upon us, damned us a little for not
insisting on being sent to our regiments, found out that my regiment was
up the river two hundred miles, and seemed mad because I passed it
when I come from St. Louis. I told him I was not expected to go hunting
around for my regiment, like a lost calf. What I wanted was for my
regiment to hunt me up. That afternoon he put me on an up-river boat
with a tag on my baggage telling where I belonged, and I bid good-bye
to the recruits, after having had three months of fun at the expense of
Uncle Sam.

CHAPTER XXVI.

I Strike Another Soft-Snap, Which is Harder Than Any Snap
Heretofore--I Begin Taking Music Lessons, and Fill Up a
Confederate Prisoner With Yankee Food.

The last two chapters of this stuff has related to early experiences,
but now that it is probable the chaplain has got over being mad at my
trading him the circus-horse, I will resume the march with the regiment.
For a month or more I had been waiting for my commission to arrive, so
that I could serve as an officer, but it did not arrive while we were at
Montgomery, and we started away from that city towards Vicksburg, Miss.,
with a fair prospect of having hot work with strolling bands of the
enemy. I was much depressed. It had got so they didn't seem to want me
anywhere. It seemed that I was a sort of a Jonah, and wherever I was,
something went wrong. The chaplain wouldn't have me, because he h