in 1863. The Confederate and Union armies occupied opposite sides of the river and used every means of gaining knowledge of each other's movements. The colored attendant in the Union camp proved very valuable here as elsewhere during the war. A colored man named Dabney drifted into the Union lines one day from a neighboring farm, and soon proved very useful because of his full knowledge of the topography of the country. He was given employment as "cook and body servant." He became much interested in the system of army signals employed, and begged to have them explained to him. This was done, and he learned them readily. His wife soon came over, and after staying awhile was allowed to return as servant to a "secesh woman" whom General Hooker was about to send to her friends on the other side. She went over and took a place as laundress at “the headquarters of a prominent rebel General." Dabney, her husband, was on the Union side, and soon began to know all about what was to take place in the Confederate camp. An hour or two before any movement took place he could tell all about it, and it always turned out as he said. The wonder and puzzle to the Union men was how he got his information, as he didn't seem to neglect his work to go off for any information, and did not converse with the scouts. After numerous questions and many That requests he finally took one of the officers to a prominent point near by, and pointed out a cabin on the banks of the river in the suburbs of the enemy's camp. He asked the officer if he saw a clothes-line with clothes hanging on it. The officer replied "Yes," whereupon Dabney said: "Well, that clothesline tells.me in half an hour just what goes on in their camp. You see, my wife over there, she washes for the officers, and cooks and waits around, and as soon as she hears of any movement or anything going on she comes down and moves the clothes on that line so I can understand it in a minute. there gray shirt is Longstreet, and when she takes it off it means he's gone down about Richmond. That white shirt means Hhl, and when she moves it up to the west end of the line, Hill's Corps has moved up stream. That red one is Stonewall. He's down on the right now, and if he moves she will move that red shirt." One morning Dabney came in and reported a movement over there, but said it "Don't mean anything, they are only making believe." An officer went out to look at the clothesline telegraph through his field-glass. There had been quite a shifting over there of the army flannels. "But how do you know but there's something in it?" "Do you see those two blankets pinned together at the bottom?" said Dabney. "Yes, but what of it?" said the officer. "Why, that's her way of making a fish-trap; and when she pins the clothes together that way, it means that Lee is only trying to draw us into his fish-trap." As long as the two armies lay watching each other on opposite banks of the stream, Dabney with his clothes-line telegraph continued to be one of the promptest and most reliable of General Hooker's scouts. (Taken from Civil War-Song and Story.) William Staines, Hero of the Fight at Belmont, was servant to General McClernand. He was close by his employer during many an engagement. On one occasion, in the course of the fight, a captain of one of the companies was struck by a spent ball, which disabled him from walking. Staines, the colored servant, rode up to him and shouted, "Captain, if you can fight any longer for the Stars and Stripes, take my horse and lead your men." He then dismounted and helped the wounded officer into his saddle, and, as he was walking away, a rebel dragoon rushed forward at the officer to take him prisoner. The brave Staines did not flinch, but drew his revolver and put a ball through the rebel's head, scattering his brains over the horse's neck. (Revised from Civil War-Song and.Story.) 1 CHAPTER XXVII. THE END OF THE WAR. FOR four years the American people had been fighting among themselves. At the outbreak of the struggle the freedom of the slaves was not looked for by many. But the Abolitionists, who grew stronger as the war progressed, pressed their views upon the leaders of the country. They took every advantage of every opportunity to make the freedom of the slaves the main issue of the war; and their efforts, coupled with the desire of the Union leaders to weaken the Confederacy by employing Negro troops, to whom they offered freedom, caused the final proclamation of Mr. Lincoln, in 1863, giving freedom to the slaves. In this war there were employed on the Union side more than 186,000 colored soldiers, whose bravery stands vouched for by every Union, and many Confederate generals, who saw them as daring in the face of death as their fellow white soldiers. On the Confederate Side, there were enlisted throughout the South, in various employments, some 6000 colored troops. But all over the South, while their masters were away at war, the Negro women and men were enlisted in the ranks of the private duties of the Southern soldiers' homes, which, ever be it remembered to the honor and credit of the Negro race of America, they protected faithfully and industriously. The opportunity for outrage and plunder was open on every side, but not a hurtful hand was laid on the thousands of white widows, orphans, and aged, who lay defenceless in the Negroes' power. This action on the part of the slaves proves that the race is not fond of bloodshed, and is kind even to its foes. Some Plantations, on the contrary, were found in better trim on the return of the masters from the war than when they left them. Negro Body-servants accompanied their masters into the war, shared the roughs of camp-life, and often were the last to minister to their wants in the hospital, and the first to bear the tidings home to the anxious family after death, taking with them sometimes the treasured watch or ring Mr. James H. Jones,* of Raleigh, N C., served as messenger to Mr. Jefferson Davis during his * He emphatically denies the assertion that has gained currency, to the effect that Mr. Jefferson Davis, while escaping from the Union forces was at tired in female clothes. Mr. J. states that the Confederate President used a large cloak, which he usually wore indoors, to disguise himself with, |