The Portland daily press., 1862-10-07
COMMUNICATIONS.
What the Sanitary Commission Is doing for
our Wounded.

DR.. Bellows, President Of the Sanitary
Commission, has caused the following letters
to be published in the N. Y. Evening Post
They explain themselves, and show what the
Sanitary Commission is doing for our wounded
soldiers on the battle-felds of Maryland:-
WASHINGTON, Sept 90.
To DR.. Belloics, President--Sir: enclose
DIR. Agnew's letter. We have sent him, since
the army of Virginia went to meet the inva-
ders, that is, within ten days:
2S.163 pieces OF dry goods, shirts, towels,
bed-ticks, pillows, &c; 80 barrels old linen
bandages and lint; 3lSS pounds farina; 2620
pounds condensed milk 5000 pounds beef
stock and corned meats 5000 bottles wine and
other cordials, and several tons of lemons and
other fruit, crackers, tea sugar rubber cloth, tin
cups and hospital conveBiences.
We are sending more forward constantly.
-Four thousand. sets Of hospital clothing will,
by special train from New York, get through
TO Frederick tomorrow, If money and energy
can break through the Instructions of this
embarrassed transportation.
Your daily supplies from New York are
reaching US regularly. Respectfully yours,
+. L. OLMsTEAD.
SANITARY COMMISSION,
Frederick, Nd, Sept. %, 1862. e
Ny Dear Olnstead:
cannot now give you report of all our
doings since last Wednesday night, but IL will
give you Joy to know that we have given aid
and comfort to orer fire thousand icounded
left Washington, as you know, on Wednes-
day, at midnight; arriving at the break in the
railroad at Monocacy, Harris and walked on
TO Frederick Harris remained at Frederick
to hasten up supplies and pushed on, on
horseback, with Vollum to Midddletown, and
quartered with dominic of the Dutch Re-
formed persuasion. | was thorouhly wet, and
though compelled to sleep in my wet clothes,
did not suffer. / found DIR. Thompson, Assist
ant Surgeon United States Army, acting Med
ical Director at Middletown, and all the church.
es, and public buildings filed with the wound
ed Of Sundays battles.
No additional medical supplies having arriv-
ed for DIR. Thompson, desired him to take
them from our wagons as they came. He had
previously obtained many essential articles of
food, DC, from our advanced train. l left
him fifty dollars, to be used in purchasing such
things as we had not, to replenish bis deficient
stores. Early on Friday morning / went on
to Keedysville, and to Gen. McClellan's head
quarters. About noon FRIDAY, 19th,) Dun
ming arrived with his wagon, and early on the
evening Of Friday, Mitchell and his train of
wagons; on Saturday morning Drs. Brink and
Proverly arrived: and now our stores became
abundant.
Dunning and myself went out with stores
as soon as he arrived, and visited barns and
farm houses within mile and half from
headquarters, and carried relief to nearly two
thousand wounded. Everywhere we were
asked for chloroform and opiates and instru-
ments and bed pans, and everything, in fact
required for the wounded, except the coarser
food furnished by the commissary, and the
comforts provided TO the extent Of their ability
by the Inhabitants, who had been previously
nearly stripped by the rebels.
The medical supplies sent to meet the emer-
gency on Wednesday did not begin to arrive
on the battle field until Saturday afternoon,
and then in small quantity and entirely mad
equateiy. Many of the same supplies are still
here lat Frederick) awaiting transportation,
while we have had at least four wagon trains
sent to the front that left Washington subse-
quent to Wednesday afternoon in addition to
two sent before in anticipation of the battle.
You can estimate at your Office the number of
wagons sent forward. including Hays's trains,
which viii be on the battle field this afternoon
As soon as Brink and Mitchell and Parsons ar
rived on the battle field, / sent them over radii
previously ascertained TO be within the circle
Of the late battles. They will be able to state
personally the fields Of their operations, as l
desired them to keep notes. ] kept Dunning's
wagon--in fact all the two horse wagons and
ambulances of our tran-constantly going and
carrying relief to thousands of wounded.
The wounded were mainly clustered about
barns, occupying the barn-yards and floors and
stables, having plenty OF good straw well brok-
en- by the power threshiDg machine. | saw
fifteen hundred wounded men lying upon the
straw about two barns within sight of each
other! Indeed, there Is not barn, or farm
house, or store, or church, or school-house be-
tween Boonesborough, ,Keedysvie and Sharps-
burg, and the latter and Smoketown, that is
not gorged with wounded--rebel and Union.
Even the cow cribs--and In many instances
the COW stables-and in one place the man.
gers, were filled. Several thousand lie in the
open abr upon straw, and all are receiving the
kind services of the farmers families and the
surgeons.
General Mcclellan moved his headquarters
from Keedysville ON Saturday to Sharpsburg.
Having studied the field and the relations Of
the clusters of wounded to a central point,
took, on Saturday, store at Sharpsburg, hir-
ing II of a Union citizen by the name of Cruise
On Saturday evening brought up the mule
teams OF Proyerly 10 Sharpsburg OnSunday
morning Dunning, MITCHELL Parsons and my
sell unpacked the boxes and flied the shelves
and bins. took charge of the wagons on Sat-
urday night because Dunning, Brink and Mitch
ell were out with RELIEF, to the right and left,
for about three thousand wounded, and Par
sons had gone back, under instructions from
Lieut.. Letterman and my approval.to Birketts-
vile with relief to five hundred and forty