Letter from Capt. Galloway, captured at Pea Ridge , from Johnson's Island Prison Camp, dated May 11th, 1862,.
"God bless the ladies of St. Louis, I say. We have many true friends there. That same evening we were ordered to be ready by 4 o'clock to go to Alton, Ill., thereby depriving us of receiving from the hands of kind ladies articles we stood so much in need of. One of the ladies who came up to see us, was Eva Bryant, whom I had the pleasure of becoming acquainted with—her whole heart and soul seemed to be set on the ultimate success of the southern cause. I passed a few minutes very pleasantly conversing with her. Just as she was leaving, she asked me for one of the Arkansas buttons, which was on my vest. Of course it gave me the greatest pleasure to comply with her request—she wanted it for a necklace which she was having made, composed of one button from each of the Southern States, that was glory enough for me for one day. I now have the consolation of knowing that a button once worn by me, and which bears upon it the coat of arms and motto of the State of Arkansas, the banner state in defence of southern rights and southern honor, now decks the necklace of a fair maiden of my own Sunny South. . . .We are very comfortably fixed [at Camp Chase], a great deal more so than I expected we would be—good comfortable houses have been built for the prisoners, capable of accommodating from twelve to fifteen in a mess; each house is provided with a small cooking stove, which facilitates the cooking very much, 'tis not much trouble to cook on one. While there I became a pretty good cook—can make as good biscuits, and coffee and fry as good beef steak as any woman. When I am released from prison and this war is over, should I be so fortunate as to win the hand and heart of some fair girl, she can't fool me about cooking. . . . Since leaving Little Rock, and up to this time, I have kept a journal of all that has transpired during that time, with all the dates given. When I have time I intend writing them out—it will form quite a volume.