t was this: Early
in 1862 the Federal commanders planned an advance on Chattanooga; but
the fact that stood in their way was, that at various points along the
line of railroad leading from Atlanta to Chattanooga, Confederate troops
had been posted: consequently the moment an advance on Chattanooga was
made, soldiers and war supplies could be hurried forward to the relief
of the city. It was General Mitchell of the Federal army who planned the
advance; and it was J. J. Andrews, an active spy in the Union service,
who planned a raid by means of which it was intended to burn the bridges
on the road north of Marietta, cut the telegraph wires, and thus destroy
for a time the lines of transportation and communication between Atlanta
and Chattanooga, and make the capture of the last-named point an easy
matter. Andrews suggested to General Mitchell that a party of bold men
could make their way to a station on the Western and Atlantic Railway
(called the State Road because it was owned by the State), capture a
locomotive, and then steam towards Chattanooga, burning the bridges and
cutting the telegraph lines as they went along. Although there seemed
to be small chance for the success of such a daring adventure, General
Mitchell gave his consent to it, agreeing to pay Andrews sixty thousand
dollars if he succeeded. To aid him, Andrews was allowed to select a
number of young men who had already made a reputation in the Federal
army for intelligence and bravery.

There were twenty-four men in this small expedition when it started for
Chattanooga. They were under the command of Andrews, who was a tall,
handsome man with a long black beard. He was cold, impassive, and had
the air of one who is born to command. He was bold as a lion, and never
once lost his coolness, his firmness, or his decision. He and his men
pretended to be Kentuckians who had become disgusted with the Lincoln
government and were making their way South, where they might find more
congenial company than that of the ardent Union men who were their
neighbors at home. This story was plausible on the face of it, for many
Southern sympathizers had fled from Tennessee and Kentucky when the
Federals began to take possession of those sections.

Andrews and his men tramped southward more than a hundred miles before
they reached Chattanooga. Before going into that city, they divided into
smaller squads, and all but two succeeded in eluding guards, sentinels,
and patrols, an