Wood County reporter. [volume] (Grand Rapids [i.e. Wisconsin Rapids], Wis.) 1857-1923, 1863-12-17

! groes And thus in the light of experiments
on these sea-islands-if the attempts at let
| ting the negro take care of himself can any
| longer be considered experiments-the last
| argument on which it was attempted to Justify
slavery, that of its necessity to the slave,
falls to the ground.
But it is idle to speak of arguments The
cOuntry's need of free labor and of the ser
vice OF black soldiers at the South, has de-
cided the question of freedom with far more
certainty than any mere words could do it,
not excepting even the proclamation of Abra-
ham Lincoln.
Truly yours, TD.C.
How the Rebel Prisoners Escaped frem Camp
Douglas.
From the Chicago Tribune.7
From the very hour of the arrival at Camp
Douglas OF the rebel prisoners, there has been
a constant effort to secure their release, not
only by the several thousand of the prisoners
themselves, who are well fed and comfortably
cared for IN every respect and have nothing
else TO occupy their minds but to make and
execute plans for their escape; but we have
IN this city numerous " fire in the rear" ad-
vocates of the rebellion, who are plotting to
release them. In several of the attempts
to escape heretofore, outsiders were impli-
Gated, who had loitered about the camp for
days and weeks, watching the movements of
the sentInels, studying the rules, the hours
when the parole would be changed the par
ticular time OF night when certain guards
they suspected could be bribed, would be on
duty again, &c, &c 4 score of these out
siders have from time to time been detected,
and paid dearly for their disloyaIty and inter-
terence. As general thing they find the
guards above the bribery, and have been ar
rested for attempting to bribe them. Our
readers will remember that some time ago
number of prisoners were got out by this
plan, and that the guards deserted, and some
OF them have left the country, and
write back as they leave for foreign climes,
that they, for a few dollars, have made them
selves exiles from their homes and friends
forever
The recently adopted strict regulations,
prohibiting the admission to Camp Douglas,
of the prisoners relatives and friends, pub
hshed in the Tribune some time since) has
had tendency to thin out the daily visitation
OF kentuckians, who for weeks swarmcd about
the entrance gate; but still there are hun
dredS per week that come, look about the
camp and go away again-the results of their
ylsItatlons are only known to themselves and
their copperhead contidants in the city But
that the prisoners have friends outside, that
do not forget them, is evident from the fact
greenback8 in liberal quantities are received
daily for them by mail and express, which
are carefully placed on deposit to the credit
OF each individual by Mr. Bushell, who has
the matter in charge. He has now about
$4,000 belonging to rebel prisoners-princi-
paliy IN greenbacks, from Kentucky, with
now and then remittance from friends in
the city.
AS before stated in these columns the
prisoners receive rations of the same articles,
from the same commissary stores that are dis
trlbuted TO our own Union soldiers and those
who behave themselves arc treated kindly in
every respect, and are made as comfortable
as possible under the circumstances. Though
they universally, in their correspondence, ex-
press themselves satisfied with their treat
ment IN camp, yetthey are constantly making
attempts to escape, to discover and prevent
which taxes the ingenuity and penetrative
sagacity of the commanding officer and all
his aids and soldiers.
Among the latter attempts to bring about
wholesale release of prisoners, was the
dcep-lald plot that was planned by the same
parties who were engaged in the lake enter
prise, a few days since, by which the rebel
prisoners on Johnson's Island and at Column
to be sacked and burned, &c. The whole
plan for the release of the prisoners at Camp
Douglas has been known to the proper Off
GERS, and the correspondence between men
high in position in Kentucky and Illinois has
been intercepted, and it was owing to the Ut
ter refusal of sCme of our citizens TO act in
the matter that no attempt was made to car
ry the plot into execution.
Some weeks ago we chrOnicled the escape
of a few prisoners who made their exit
through the floor of the ''whte oak prison,
and thence by tunneling under ground to the
street. More recently another tunnel, nearly
completed, was discovered in another part of
the camp. A deep ditch was at once dug in
side of the came, which kept filled with water
would betray the existence of any under
ground outlet. But the recent cold weather
has frozen the water so that this ditch no
longer serves the purpose for which it was in
tended, and, taking advantage of this, anoth-
tunnel has been dug through which seventy
eight prisoners escaped on Wednesday night.
HOW THE TUNNEL WAS MADE
The barracks run lengthwise of the fence,
and the iosts, or floor-timbers crosswise Of
the barracks. First the prisoners removed
4 portion of the floor beneath their hunks,
then dug a ditch lengthwise of the barracks,
passing the dirt back beneath the floor be-
tween the joists. This ditch beneath the bar
racks must be large enough to contain all the
dirt removed from the tunnel. This compile
ted, the shaft or underground outlet is begun,
the dirt being carried into this newly formed
ditch. In this manner day after day, the
prisoners dig away, using pieces of boards to
excayate with, carrying the Grit back in bags
articles of clothing. From the statement
made by some of the " contractors we learn
they were engaged upon it for three or four
weeks. The top of this tunnel is fully four
feet below the surface, being through por-
ton of the camp grounds, where the ground
is high, dry and sandy-about due north from
the University building. The hole was so
large that man, could easily and speedily
crawl through it upon his hands and knees
The ingress hole was beneath a bunk in one
of the small rooms, and was kept covered
with flooring and slept upon at night. The
outer opening was just outside the fence on
the south side of the camp.
HOW THE TUNNEL WAS USED.
Our informant states that the tunnel was
complete, and ready for use sometime
"Wednesday afternoon or evening but that
| the frozen crust at the exit hole was not bro
ken through till about eight o'clock at night
Then the tunnel was filled by prisoners who
| were 'willing to run the risk'-a line fifty
| feet long of butternuts on their hands and
knees, completely filling'the tunnel from end
| to end-what profile a cross section would
| have presented. The foremost man, like a
ground-squirrel or gopher, popped his head in
and out the hole as prudence dictated till the
sentinel had passed by, his back being to-
wards them, then the men rushed out at the
rate of several per minute, until the sentinel
could be seen returning, when they waited