SALT by J.A. Bozman
A WAR INCIDENT. HOW SALT WAS MADE DURING THK FOUK YEARS' STRUGGLE. The following interesting article frrm the pen of Capt. J A Boz-man is clipped from the Mobile Register: On December 2, 1862, General Graut, was with his entire army landed at Miliken's Bend, Missis sippi river, lor the purpose of cutting a canal on the west side of the river to Young's Point, in Ja liirect linenot mote than three miles through a.21 1 beavily-timberej swamp. Ibis piece of military strategy, when completer), would enable the Federal gunboats and transports to pats through and avoid the Confederate batterits lo cated onthebaights of Vickeburg surrendered.
July 4, 1863. At the above ttated time I was successfully planting in Louisiana, a few milae below Grant's point oi landing. My negroes, about one hundrsd in number, though aware of the spr roach of their so-called friends, remained loyal to us, and without compulsion packed "bag and bakgage" into their six-mule wagons and started for Alabama, via Vitkfcburg, leaving behind the beet improved plantation in the parish, with about six hundred ba'ea of cottou, ten thcu-and buxh- h c f corn, a lr(;e stock of cattle ami hogw, Rnd other plantation products too numerous to mention of which were confiscated or appropriated lor the use and bene- i'- of the Federal army soon to fol ow in our wake. As we appioach- ed Vickaburg, the Federal gunboats, pstrolhngrthe river, espied n the distance our whitetop wagons, o doubt thinking they contained provisiousa'comiog in from Texas for the Confederate soldiers then occupying that then 'tilth t impregnable - city, commenced shelling? our fleeing cavalcade, t i the disgust and fright of their so- called friend and brother. Th Confederates too, no doubt, shared the supposition witbjtheir river foe, and commenced replying over our heads, a veritable duel going on, shot and shell filling all aroDnd ns, not an enviable place to be in, I assure you.
Before reaching our destination Colonel Catteby ap R Jones, su perintendent of the naval gun foundry located at Selma, impress ed forty of my men for the use of tb Confederate government, paying me $40 a month for each, I protested, I had matured plans which would enable me to use these men to great advantage. Salt was worth $20 per bushel throughout the Confederate States. We bad in Alabama salt wells sufficient from which we oould make salt without diffiulty, but we lack, d the implements or utsnei's such as caldrons, etc. With these forty men I could overcome these obstacles. My father-in-law, Captain James H Uearfng, being one of the pioneers of Alabama, built at St.
Stephens, above M 'bile, the firet steamboat, that as cended the Alabatra river, in 1819 She ran eucceasfu ly to and fiom Tuskaloosa to Mobile until 1824, then, by urue miemanaKtment, she taak at the wharf near TuakaljOBa. All that re-maiutd of this historical ciaft was her boiler, seventeen feet long and six feot in diameter, tbree-'ourths of an inch thick. If I could get this monster boiler out of the river and cut it open j lengthwise I would bave two caldrons sufficient to make a great quantity of i;t.' I explained to Colonel Jones my poi. He saw they were feaaible and practical and piopoded loaning me the men for two weeks, my pay to com.
mence immeJiftieiy, as the Conleder atj government would be benefited to the extent o' one-tenth of all the sale' (we were paying a lithe of all product etc., made to the government dunug the war.) My undertaking was a perfect sue. cess. I engaged Dr. Ltacb, a nracti tical foundryman, paying him suffi cient remuneration to assist me. Wej got the boiler out upon the blufi.where! he superintended the cutting of this huge boiler open lengthwise, as pro- pored, after which he inserted etaples so as to attach a rudder for steering at the end of each, fixed attachments at each side for the support of two seats: near which were oarlocks riveted for the use of two oars; staples upon each side for half-dozen bent hoops or wa" gon bowi, which were oovered with common waeon cover, so as to protect the occupants from wind and rain.
The iron monsters were fnow completed. They were provisioned for a cruise of ten days. These improvised boats were lauched iulo that water where they had rested near half a century. Three men getting on board ol each, one steering and two plying their oars, they started on their eruise of 260 oiilesto Clarke county.ilabama. Upon arrival there, the boilers were placed upon brick furnaces and in them were made thoua iuu of bushels j of salt.
With this staH of life, I was enabled to clothe, feed and shoe my other negroes, which others found very difficult to do duriBg this four years siege which we were subjected to, euv ronnaents being thrown around us on eyery side. 1 J. A. B. Tusk.alooea.'AU , Dec.
4, 1895..
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