Mineral Point weekly tribune. (Mineral Point, Wis.) 1859-1868, 1862-07-23
A Shameful History---Further in Re-
gard to Col Paine of the 4th Wis
consin Regiment.

consin Regiment.
The Kenosha Telegraph contains a summary
of a statement made at the celebration of the
4th in that city by Rev. A. c. BARRY, chap
lain of the 18th Wisconsin, who has just re
turned from New Orleans, in relation to the
circumstances under which Col. PAINE refused
to deliver up certain fugitive slaves of rel els.
It places the affair in new light, and makes
it doubly disgraceful to the General under
whom such base and heartless cruelty was
perpetrated:
Mr. Barry had Just arrived from New Or
leans and related his experience. Tie sa'1
that very little patriotism or love for the
Union had been found down there among
/ white people Either the feeling had been
| crushed out by the iron despotism OF slavery,
! or else men were afraid to show it. But with
| the slaves i was different. They are always
ready to give information, always TO be relied
| on the only real friends of the Union; and
| ther were alwa avs ready to venture life and
| everything else to serve the Union cause,
| without fee or compensation, save the hope
that something might turn up to give them
freedom In all their reconnossanees, they
had to use the slaves guides and lock to
them for all information to the strength
and position of the enemy. At New orleans
they obtained the services of two faithful, IN
teIlioent eontrabands who furnished int0rnla-
ton, went as guides and rendered the most
| important service in ascertaining the exact
| position and strength of the enelny at Nicks-
bur@h-the number and position of the bate
ries and all the information necessary to ena-
BILE our Generals to make successful attack
upon that last stronghold of the rebels upon
the Mississippi and all this without fee or
reward, save the hope of freedom. When the
| no ,:r- 81
were taken along for their valuable services.
Al Baton Rouge men appeared, claiming to
, be the owners Of the two slaves, and deman
ded them of the Gen. commanding lie au
thorized the rebel masters to search for them
and IF found to take them. The negroes hac
2 heard of what was going on, and kept out OF
sight on one of the steamers But the man
hunters were not going to be banked of theil
prey They obtained an order to search the
, steamer. but the sentries assured them theS
had no property there and sent them away
Again they returned accompanied by an aid
{ Of the commanding General, who enforced q
search. The negroes had hidden in the hold
of the steamer The engineer was ordered to
turn his steam into the hold, which he did
and actually steamed them out.
, The poor fellows were given up to THEN
masters. or those who claimed TO be such, ta
ken inst outside our lines and punished with
$50 lashes each and then had their necks en-
circlcd in the iron collar, with two prongs OF
,, spikes on each side of the head, sticking up
above the ears These were locked on, and
the slaves marched off. And all this punish
ment was inflicted because they had given
valuable information to the Union army.
Five DAYS after that, these same men, wit
their hideous collars still on, came into the
camp of the 4th Wisconsin Regiment. The
collars were filed off by the order Of Col.
Paine, and the speaker still has one Of them,
as a memento of the barbarism of slavery
Col Paine was ordered to deliver the men up
again to their inhuman masters, but he re
fused to do it. For this he placed under
arrest, and when his regiment marched out
from Baton Rouge for Vicksburg, Col. Paine
marched in the rear, without arms Here the
vast audience gave three rousinS cheers for
Col Paine Never said the speaker, ''was
I so proud Of my Colonel, rs at that mo-
| ment :"