The Sun.
London, England, 1863-11-27 00:00:00

.PRISONERS OF WAR,

The exchange of sick and wounded prisoners, but
of no others, still proceeds; 185 Confederate sol•
diers, all maimed and wounded, were delivered at
City Point on Oct. 29. In exchange for them 185
Yankee prisoners, all in the same or a worse con-
dition, were placed on board flag of trace boat. A
detachment of the Richmond Ambulance Committee
went down to take charge of the moving of these
mangled wretches, and provided also with refresh-
ments and comforts for the alleviation of the suffer-
ings of their feliow.creatnres on both sides. This
is sad work. All these prisoners on both sides were
unfit to be moved in their present condition, and
many of them forfeit their lives in the procees of
recovering their liberty. It is a cruel necessity
which our enemies impose upon us, by sending us
none but the maimed and suffering, who are likely,
as they hope, to be o 2 no further service in our ,
army, because our authorities have no alternative
but to drag an equal number from their beds of
pain to make the suitable return. it is a wanton
and barbarous aggravation of the inevitable horrors
of war. We understand very well the policy of
the enemy in making so many difficulties about
the exchange of prisoners, and in breaking the
arrangement of the cartel, save as regards the
sick and wounded prisoners. They feel themselves
strong in the numbers of their people, such as they
are, and in their ability to bring over hordes of
hungry Europeans to replace those who may fall
or be taken ; and they hope by degrees, if they have
luck, to make our armies dwindle in numbers, being
quite Willing that we should keep their men in
prison till the end of the war, knowing that they
have far more than a compensation in keeping from
the field an equal or even smaller number of ours. It
is a compliment to the Confederate soldier; and in
that point of view we may derive some comfort
from this policy, but it is not the less a barbarous,
brutal one. We believe there are too many prisoners
taken in this war—far more than in any other of
which history makes mention—and perhaps some-
thing
will be gained if the breaking off of the cartel
shall induce soldiers on both sides not to be taken
prisoners.We certainly recommend it to our men
not to surrender ; if they do so their lot is pro-
bably t 3 be crowded in such filthy dens as Fort
Delaware till the end of the war, only to be
exchanged when their health is broken bitterly, so
that they can be of no use either to the cause or to
themselves. If our words could by any means reach
the Yankee soldiers we would tell them their fate
also, if they come here as prisoners, cannot be
a very bright one this coming winter. It is true
our authorities do what they fairly can—with jus-
tice to our own people—to give them humane usage,
and that our medical officers afford them every
assistance in their power, but there are 13,000 of
them now in Richmond, not to mention those de-
tained in other places. There is here, if not a
scarcity, at least a great dearth of provisions, and
not less of fuel; while, as to the medicines, they are
contraband of war, and our enemies use extreme
diligence in keeping them from us altogether. We
would assure those Yankee soldiers that death on
the field were far ,better than captivity here this
winter, and would accordingly counsel them also
not to be taken alive.—Richmond Enquirer.

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