This historic book may have numerous typos and missing text. Purchasers can usually download a free scanned copy of the original book (without typos) from the publisher. Not indexed. Not illustrated. 1908 edition. Excerpt: ... In seed time, we were allowed the privilege to sow garden seeds, and plant corn. This gave us a prospect of being furnished with not only a more full supply, but a greater variety of food, if it should prove our unhappy lot to be kept in confinement another winter. It also gave the prisoners an ...
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This historic book may have numerous typos and missing text. Purchasers can usually download a free scanned copy of the original book (without typos) from the publisher. Not indexed. Not illustrated. 1908 edition. Excerpt: ... In seed time, we were allowed the privilege to sow garden seeds, and plant corn. This gave us a prospect of being furnished with not only a more full supply, but a greater variety of food, if it should prove our unhappy lot to be kept in confinement another winter. It also gave the prisoners an opportunity to use proper exercise to preserve health, and prevent disease, a consideration of no small importance. But, disaffected by our former treatment, and fearing that the afflictions we had once received, would again be laid upon us, many chose to hazard their lives by an attempt to swim down the rapids. Some thus succeeded in making their escape, while others only plunged themselves into the jaws of death! This caused the confinement of all who were left behind. The British now set about encompassing our barracks with pickets, or barricades, by setting posts in the ground adjoining each other, and fastening them together. Discovering what they were about to do, several of the prisoners, arriong whom I was myself one, resolved to make our endeavors to effect our escape, before they had completed the barricade, and encircled our camp, which would deprive us of the liberty of the Island. We accordingly collected some logs together on the lower part of the Island for a raft; carried some provisions for our sustenance on the way home; secreted it near the logs; and at an hour when we supposed all were at rest, we started, but had not gone far, when we espied one of the soldiers upon the bank of the river, employed in dressing some fish. We then returned to our barracks. Our attempt to escape now became known to some of our fellow prisoners, by discovering our absence, who betrayed our object to our keepers; thus courting favor by the deeds of...
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