Richmond Whig. [volume] (Richmond, Va.) 1862-1865, 1863-03-20
SCoMMUNICATED.

The gratitude of the nation is due TO the untrng eff
forts of many of citizens to render comfortable tie
sick and wounded soldiers of our army, and long and
lasting will be that feeling in the breasts of many of our
noble defenders But there is thing still needul 10
which we desire to call the attention of the charitable
portion of our population
1t IS not our intention to find fault with any, nor to
cast blame upon those whose duty it is to remedy the
evil in question We are induced to lay the subject
before the public mind solely from sense andfeeling
| OF duty and humanity
The attention shown TO the patients in the different
Hospitals is general thing constant and knd yet,
wthal the ruthless hand of death claims his suffering
victim, and hurries him to the grave. The hearse APP
pears at the hospital door, the driver stops TO receive
the unmarked uncared Tor coffin and rates on to the
cemetery there to deposit his burden in unknown
grave Earth closes over his body and he is forgotten
Another name has been added to that already lengthy
catalogue which must he entered on the page oil histo
/ ~ as "the unknown dead
Nor is this all The burial service, which e has pro-
badly been accustomed to hear and revere-which has
consigned to the tomb the ashes of his ancestors and
which the Church6a fit to Ordan aud USE ia de-
a ed him. His sorrowing parents not only mourn be-
cause his last resting place cannot be found, but they
denied the consolation of knowing that his body has
/ received decent nteIment. Cast into the ground
without the consideration which kind master grants to
afathlul dog, this faithful servant Of his country has
gone TO his last accouut-buried amidst the bes
and tests Of the hearsedriver and the digger
OH friends ellowcitizens and fellow-solders OF
| this be remediedy
1C cergymen cannot attend to it, let laymen take IL
in hand If constituted authority cannot correct the
evil let the mnistering spirits of the hOspitalthe la
dies whose constant kndnesses deservesthe countrys
thahks-fnd way Tor it to be done and let it no lon
ger be said that soldier Of the Confederate Staes-a
Republic where civilization has trust made its per-
manent abodes permitted to sink into the grave I'M
honored and unknown
As a simple suggestion we beg leave to submit the
klowhk:
Let record book be kept at each buryng.ground,
and with every corpse, let numbered head board he
carried to the grave and that number be registered OPP
poste the NAME company and regiment of the deceased
Surely this arrangement is easily made and would be
found to answer everyjpurpose.
The attention of each aud every christian man and
woman OF every denomination earnestly asked 10 this
great object and lSre let there be union of hearts
aud hands.
We have all heard of the praiseworthy intention of
erecting a monument to The Unknown Dead" when
this bloody strife shall have ceased; but why should
those who die in midst be made the unnecessary
objects of our long deferred respect
Our subject is worthy Of som. consideration and we
trust il may receive when these lines meet the eve of
those whose hearts feel for the widowed children
and fatherless mourners Of our land.