An Island No. 10 correspondent of the St. Louis Democrat gives the following incident, as having occurred there:–
“In a former letter I wrote of a contemplated attempt on the part of Lieut. Allen of Company “C,” of Twenty-seventh Illinois, to spike the guns at the upper rebel fort at this place, christened, as we have been told, Fort Polk. This bold task was undertaken last Friday night, when the Lieutenant in company with four other men dropped down in a skiff and found a large body of rebels at work constructing platforms for supporting their cannon. The Lieutenant resolved not to be totally disappointed, and landing, very coolly approached a sentinel who was pacing a parapet at the lower extremity of the fort, and representing himself as a brother rebel, remarked: “I will relieve you from duty now sir.” The rebel guard, wearied and thankful, moved off to his quarters, when the Lieut. spiked the 64 pounder at the lower end of the fort, which was served with such accuracy against us on Monday. The proximity of the laboring rebels would not suffer him to prosecute any further a work which had already proven him a daring officer.”
– Published in The Davenport Daily Gazette, Davenport, Iowa, Saturday Morning, March 29, 1862, p. 2
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