St. Cloud Democrat. [volume] (Saint Cloud, Stearns County, Minn.) 1858-1866, 1862-12-04

sale, but finding the trade profitable th<
Commissary took it into his own hand
The negroes were obliged to sell the fruit
to him, and he retailed it at, from Is cts
to 81 per melon tor fruit inferior to tina,
raised in Minnesota. To our mind, thi.
is highly appropriate. The Confederate
Government is fighting for the privilege
Of whipping women and sterling babies
aud, for its officers to huckster watcrmcl
ons, is step upward in the scale of re-
spectability Captain A. says, in brief
that their treatment, as prisoners, was no,
inhuman, not cruel but simply mean.-
There were ten cups and saucers, ten
knives and forks and three tin pans 70,
each mess of fifteen American Officers
one of the pans was used as wash basin.
Their rations were -four, rice, meat, su,
gar and vinegar. This they were not per-
mitted to cook. there was no bakery, cv-
erything was done on the usual plan Of
slave labor. Their flour was wet with wa
ter and grease, rolled into cakes thick as
a mans hand, laid on hot frying pan,
and scorchcd on one side, then turned
over and scorched on the other, generally
leaving the inside dough, some odd times,
it was baked through. Their meat was
sometimes semi-dccaycd bacon, sometimes
good beef, boiled and a soup made minus
salt, but seasoned with dry Jumps of -four,
as the cook stirred it in dry trying to
thicken it. Of the bread they got bit
of cake, one half the size of a mans
hand, and table spoonful OF cook
cd rice for each meal, of which there were
but two in day breakfast at from nine
until half past eleven, dinner at five, or
thcabouts. OF sugar they had enough. to
swcetcn coffee, if they had had the coffee.
For the first four days this was supplied
made of rye and weak, this luxury was
soon Withdrawn, but they had plenty Of
good water. No clothing or bedding was
furnished them, but the weather was hot
and the place healthy, so that when they
were brought away, out of more than two
hundred only two were unable to walk to
the cars.
At Richmond they were thrown into
prison, for although the rebels were bring
ing them North fast as possible: they still
appeared afraid of their escaping. At
Richmond some who had money hired
carriages to takc them to Aikcn's Land
ing, and when there, they proposed to pay
their colorcd drivers, according to agree
men, some rebel officers stepped up and
demanded the money. 1t was con6scated
and the drivers left minus. There they
Grst saw the Stars and Stripes, and thci'
captivity ended.
Capt. A. says that 50 far as he could
learn from conversation with many rcbe
officers aud citizens, the Southern people
arc perfectly confident of establishing
their separate government. They argue
that they have maintained their govern
mcnt two years, and that no revolution
has been crushed after that time. Sc
much for McClellan's "getting ready"
At the close of his address, and al
marked points through it Capt Andrew:
was enthusiastically checrcd, as was Capt
lnman when he took ths stand.
Capt. Inman, without any Of Captain
Andrews polish, is natural orator, anc
in his description Of the battles of LUX:
and Corinth gave all present, VIC think, I
much clearer idea of those engagement:
than they had ever before had.
At luka a large force of Union troop!
had abandoned s2SO,00O worth of com
missary stores. Price had taken possess
ion and the object was to rctake the store!
and catch Price. Before daylight, with
out breakfast, two Brigades under Gen
Rosccrans were ordered to take up posi-
ton six miles out of Iuka to catch Price
after Grant had attacked him on the othe1
side and driven him out. All morning
all forenoon they waited, but no sound O
distant cannon There could be no at
tack by Graht.-What was the matter
noon came and passed, and the men stoot
dinncrlcss at their posts. At length, tw,
solitary horsemen appeared, natives, com
: ing from 1uka, they were questioned an.
stated that Price had left Iuka the even
ing previous. Rosecrans determined t
on toward 1uka until he fn,nd h;a trail