Rensselaer Republican, Volume 24, Number 44, Rensselaer, Jasper County, 30 June 1892 — How Johnny Heb Got a Horse. [ARTICLE]

How Johnny Heb Got a Horse.

Washington Post. The Confederate cavalryman was often puzzled as how to provide him- j self with a horse. The authorities ! gave-bina the qhoice to keep mounted or go into the ranks with his musket, as horses were not furnished by the Government. ~Tb~be4i&mqunted and become a foot soldier was worse to him than a court martial, and he would risk much in his efforts to get a horse from the enemy. In the fall of 1863 a rebel cavalryman had his horse killed, in a skirmish near Warren ton, and as * his‘ best chances was then to capture one from the enemy, he put his wits to work to devise the ways and means. He was with the outside pickets and not far off, on the pike, were the cavalry pickets pf the enemy. He procured a piece of telegraph wire from the railroad, and when twilight came on stretched this across-jhe road, fastening one end to the fence and the other end to a convenient tree, just high enough to catch a cavalryman. about the belt. When matters were thus arranged to his liking he started down the pike and stopped in plain view of the enemy. It was not long before three of them gave chase, mounted on good horses. It was now too dark for them to see the wires, and on they came, determined to have a prisoner. The chase was sharp and quickly over, so that by the time the rebel schemer had passed through and under his trap the* enemy was upon him.

The sequel is not hard to guess. Two of the pursuers were quickly and mostimceremoniously unhorsed, the third being so much astonished and frightened at their fate as to turn and beat a hasty retreat. The two horses without their riderp continued down the road, and were easily captured by the Confederate, who, by his «fclever ruse, became thenowner, and kept his place in the cavalry. The two pickets left- to themselves hurriedly made their way back to their comrades as crestfallen and astonished as two men couldHje. Thb hero of this incident tells the tale himself, and adds he rede one of these horse-4 to Appomattox, and from there to-his homeland thqt it was ono of the best he ever owned.