 Silas was sent to serve Sergeant Andrew Chandler, who initially enrolled in a company called the Palo Alto Confederates which later became part of Company F of the 44th Mississippi Infantry.Silas' descendants believed that Silas had saved money earned doing odd jobs as a carpenter and attempted to buy his freedom before the war started.However, manumission of Silas was likely illegal under Mississippi law, and some descendants believe Silas may have been defrauded of the money he gave to his Chandler masters in an attempted transaction.