Daily Ohio statesman. [volume] (Columbus, Ohio) 1855-1870, 1862-12-28

American citizen, was taken Into aide room
where around me lay In heaps manaoles, chains
and handouts. With such surroundings Was
stripped and searched, and my watch, nv
money, my spectaoles. my shaving apparatus,
and even my medicines were all taken from me
was not permitted to retain even an old
newspaper or q bit Of waste paper of any kind.
Aner this degrading operation had been per-
Lormeo, ana before conducting me from the
oommandant's room to my dungeon, all the
otner prisoners about the fort we're locked into
tneir rooms that l might not bo seen and 70
sognized, iest peradvcnture Information might
oe given TO the world and my friends of my
Wnereabouts, and tho cruelties about 10 be-
praottced upon me. One Of the prisoners hay-
Ing lesfned few daya aftetward, through the
meclum OF the newspapers, who the mysterious
stranger ka7, wrote 10 friend Of his, "that
Dr. oidefof Ohio had been brought 20 Fort
neisyette and placed In solitary confinement. )"
ds letter was returned to him by the com.
msndanf, requsing him to strike out 90 much
OF u as referred to the case Of Dr. Oid,.
MY dungeon was on the ground, with a briek
pavement or floor over about the one half Of 4.
and 90 great was the dampness that In a very
short time Mould would gather upon any ar.
tioe lett upon The hoor. Ny bed was an iron
siretenef, with very thin husk msttress upop
it-so INN, indeed, that you conld feel eyery
IRON eia. IN IL the moment Jon lay down upon
H. Inc brick Moor, with all its dampnsss, would
nave been far more comfortable than this from
ana nusK Ded, mad 1t not been for the rata and
sue vermIn mat infested the room. had slso
OF government bread, With an old aiipflns ,ns,x
tin OF Lincoln coffee, Wish slice uf ho,isd,
aaited pork, was my fare. Ny only drink Other
than their nasty coffee, was rainWater, I vas
furnished with no towel, neither could anv an
treaty procure one for me. Neither could I In
duce my jiilors to let me have candle durino
my long tedious sick nights. No entreaty oouIa
procure Tor me the return Of the medioine
which had been taken from me when vss
searched. Again and again begged for The
little bit OF opium to relieve nv suffering .vbIcb
had been taken out Of my pocket with nv 9th Ar
medicine, but all in vain.
After ten days of such treatment and suoh
suffering, late one night, the Sergeant of The
guard brought ne some medicine, which be IN.
formed me the Surgeon at Fort Hamilton had
sens me. Ihis surgeon knew nothing about my
case, nsVing never seen me, or been Informed by
me OF my condition. With no light In my cell,
With no one to give me even q drink Of NV
rAinwstsr, you can we'll imagine that wonld M,
sake the medicine. did not know but tbat NV
laiiors designed to poison me. Their preylons
treatmentj justified such an opinion. / made mn
my mind that II died In Fort LAFAYETTE.
would die natural death, unless indeed Lin.
coin ordered me to be tried by drum.bead |
oouft-martial and shot, which 1 fell he had mat
as much tight to do as he had to arrest and i'm |
prison nein the manner be had done. Under such
treatment, and BY this time, you NAV we'll i'm.
agine that had gos q " Dig mad" on me4 and
tnia, ! tnink, helped 10 save my life, for the |
uutn is, had got to be too mad TO die. and NO
tnsnks to Lincoln, bot under kind Providence
began to getbe from that time on.
1ou can well iEi agine that after such treat.
menI Nnen my son was permitted to visit me,
ne found me 'emaolated and careworD.1 Tbe
only wonder is tina. be found me alive.
II anything could add to the cruelty inflicted
upon me uuring these long days and nights of |
my sickness and suffering, it was the refusal of |
Bible. Day after day begged the sergeant to
procure one for me. His constant apsTer vac,
The commanding officer says you shan't have
one" begged him to remind the command.
ing oftcer tha! We lived In Christian, and
not neathen, land; that was an American
oisizen, ana NOT a condemned felon. SILL tbeI
answer was: "Ths commanding officer saws ,ou
shan't have one. and ycl iced not ask any
mofej' and 1t was not until after sixteen days
OF such more than heathenish treatment that
Colonel Burke, Of FoRt Hamilton, unon the
importantly Of my son, sent an order to the
commandant Of Fort Lafayette to let me have
q Bible. ' '"0 "a'e
IL was upon the sixteenth day of INV lonely
imprisonment, that my son, upon an order Of
tue Secretary Of War, was permitted IN ace
me, not 10 my lonely cell, but in the command.
anps room and presence. It was with much
dimcuity tnat, even at that time, I was able to-
wa Ma,h rom my cell to the commandant's room.
ln.s Vas me n!st time during my imphson-
ment sna' mad been able to obtain an inter-
spectlcn Of the prisoners, he had carsfrII,
avoided my dungeon. No kindly MESA % ~
inquiry as 30 my wants and condition had aver
reached me from him. seized upon this on. |
portunity to let him know that wss human
Deing, ana "a such was entitled 20 humane |
tfestmenti that such thing as refusInR a
prisoner Bible, was unknown In spy cIyiiIxed
community. His answer was, that he was not
permitted, under bis orders, to let me have
one. ....s ~. ~. 49, ri'o''o
y ] had great reason to be thankful that nv |
sons visit gave me an opportunity to see The |
com mandant, for from that time, although Kent
In solitary confinement, my condition vas
made mere comfortable. A better mattrasa
was put upon my bed, occasionally raw onion |
or tomato Waa added TO my dinner, and twice.
1 believe, some picked beats we're sent me
from the cook room. A-e
City, and obtain from the Secretsrv ~ Wa ~
ordernto that effect, before be cuuld sse M |
AZ soon rs he learned how had been treatsd
he returned Immediately TO Washjnpton. and
with the assistance Of very kind friend. pro. |
cured an order from Seofetarv stan,oo ~, -. |