New-York daily tribune., 1863-08-31
THE KILLING OF PRISONERS

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The Federal authorities now hold about
eighty thousand Rebel prisoners Of war-more
than half of them paroled and at home--whiIe
the Rebels have some thirty thousand of our
men as prisoners in their hands. 1t is greatly
desirable, on the score of humanity, that there
should be an exchange Of all held in durance
forthwith; for our brethren suffer terribly from
the scarcity Of provisions, medicines, clothing,
medical Skill &c, &C., at the South. We arc
ready TO exchange man for man so far as tho
Rebels can 90, and anxious TO have that ex-
change effected at once. Gen. Meredith is now
at Fortress Monroe, ready to confer with the
Rebel ommissioner-whOeyer he MAJ be-on
/ this point, and save the Coniederacy the ex-
pcnse and trouble of sending q Yice-Prcsidcnt
and gunboat all the way to Washington. We
want nothing but what is fair and equal, and
the Rebels are certainly not in condition to
demand any thing more.
! Then what is the obstaclel
/ The RicLmOnd Enquirer, in leader which We
transfer to our columns, declares that sit il
scarcely possible iha, any satisfactory conclu-
sion can be arrived at by the Commissioners.
Why not Because "the Federal Government
has planted itself insOlen'ly on the demand that
our runaway negroes, when taken III arms
against their masters, shall be treated a. prison.
ors Ct war;" and "ths is a thing when the
temper of the country [Dixiel cannot endure
That is bad certainly. "Reyolted negroes"
must De subject to death or enSlsyemeh'i re-
yotedr whites alone are 10 be treated ~ prison.
or. of war Bnt what writer on International
las, or ,he law, Of war. ever laid down the
principle that rebellion was the privilege OK
Whites alone What authority, human or Di-
yine is there for maintaining that our prisoners
are AL entitled to exchange, while those taken
by the Rebels are not We do not learn.
Our Richmond cotcmporary attributes tho
Yankee "outrage' Of insisting on general ez-
change to our temporary Luck in holding an
excess of prisoners" 1t asserts tina, we virtual
IL hold the Confcdcrates - Rebels and criminals
who have no rights" But nO--we have never
asserted that Rebels have no rights. 1t
would i'll become Us TO DO that, since We date
our history from rebellion. What we DO in
sist on is that one set Of rebeis shall be treated as
,ceH ae another Here are Pemberton. Gardner.
Buckner. and thousands more OF prominent Re
bes against our Government-natives of loyal
States, graduates Of our Military Academy, OH
GERS Of our National army-who rebeled, vent
over e. the enemy, fought against Us, were beat
en-, captured, paroled and exchanged. Ifthere
are "revclted" negroes in our service, they cam
not have deserved worse Of their ex-mss'ers than
Pemberton Il Co. have at our hands. We pro-
pose, then, to exchange evenly all men captured
in fair, open warfare, leaving the fate OF Sples.
and all their kind TO be settled by the established
laws Of war Who can suggest an improvement
on this rule, And who does not feel that those
who refuse TO be governed by it are solely re-
sponsble for the miseres suffered by prisoners OF
war who might be exchanged but are not, be-
cause the Confederate chiefs prefer the interest
of Slavery TO that oil their brave and unfortunate