The daily register. [volume] (Wheeling, W. Va.) 1863-1864, 1863-12-01
THE RICHMOND PRISONERS.

u lH klGhMuNU PMSUNEkS.
! 'sStatenaent Of the Union Surgeons Jast Re-
T leased from Libby PRISON. Barbarity OF
!. the Rebel Authorities-Dreadful Mortality
AmOng the Prisoasrs-- Heroism Of our
Soldiers, &c.
F The following statement, by the surgeons
l,justr released from the Libby Prison at
Richmond, Of the treatment of our prisoners
There, will be presented to the War Depart
ment to-day :DV ,'a -al
4 ~ 3sF1 WAsHIsaToN, Nov. u, 1853.
f. We, the undersigned, surgeons Of the Uni,
ted States Army, and recently prisoners ia
Richmond, Va, consider il our duty TO pub
/ lish few facts that came to our knowledge
while we were inmates of the hospital at
| tached to Libby Prison. We enjoyed for
several months daily access to the hospitals
where the sick and wounded among our
1 Union soldiers received treatment. As q
result of our observations, we hereby de-
clare our belief that since the battle Of
1 { Chickamauga the number of deaths per diem
has averaged fully. fifty. The prevailing
d;.easss sre diarhoasa dvsentery and tynhoid
| nnenmon;ag or late the percentage of
baaetbs bas greatly, Increased. the result of
causes that have been long at work-as in /,
sufficient food, clothing and shelter, com,
bined with that depression ofspirits brought
on so often by long confinement. lt NAV
! seem almost Incredible when we affirm, of
our n.r.on.i knowIedoe that in the three
1 ,i;ss,s ffS. f1niEnnnR so]diers the averaoe
t !, 8 srlu' fortv nor dav. and mon
~ ..st :. sbla tsst;monv we are forced
/ -. hsl;sys, tj,sts tho deaths in the tobacco
ffactor;es and mon the island will raise the
1totsl mortalitv aiming ar the Union prison
are go aft mar 7dav or fifteen hundred
ronth,v ....r,isf
Tbs = svtremelv redncsd condition of those
hronahs f.o,n-tta ;sland- arOues that hun.
l.dsS,s3n.,i s;ck srss sleftl lbe6;nd who with
ms ssw~nnM ba eons;dered fit subjects for hos
n;tsl treotmont Sucb. teo-is the fact. as
j ;nyar;ahIv stated by scores we have con,
4ysrsed with from that camp. The same to
a degree holds ,true, of the prisoners in the
dlitv. LIT would be reasonable estimate to
1 nut the number who are iit subjects for hos
pitals, but who are refused admittanee, at
! Ave hundred A thousand are already un-
der treatment in the three hospitals, and
the rebel surgeons themselves say the mum.
Der of patients is only limited by the small
accommodations provided Thus we have
over ten per cent of tle whole number of
prisoners held classed as SICK men, who
need the most ,assiduous and sklltul atten-
ton; yet, in the essential matter OF ratlons,
they are receiving nothing but corn bread
and sweet potatoes Meat is no longer fur
pshed to any class of our prisoners except
to the few officers in Libby hospital, and all
sick or we'll officers or privates are now fur
nished with very poor article of corn bread
in place of wheat bread, unsuitable diet for
hospital patients prostrated with diarrhoeee,
dvseptery and fever. to say nothing Of the
balance of startling instances of individual
snff.rino and horrjd nictnres of death from
nrotracted sickness and semi-starvation we
have had thrust upon our observation
The first demand of the Door creatures
from the island was alwavs for sometbing to
coma hole oIod ond onv.rel ,r;tb ron,,;n -
snd t,tb many of tbam are too oftsn bs"
rnnd all rsaob of medical sk;ll IN nna IN.
stsnce the ambulanoa brouot siytean tn the
bosn;taI anj dur,na ths niobt .aven -,
them died Again, eighteen were brought.
and eleven of them died in twenty.four
hours. Atanotber time foorteen were sd.
mittad and in q single day ten of tbem
died Jndoino from 9bat ue bsvsonrsolres
soan ,rJ dc L6ow We do not bss;tate to
saw that under a treatment oG Systematic
abnse neoIact and semi .starvation tho nnm.
bers who Are becoming permanently broken
down in their constitutions must no reck.
oned bv thousands,
We ieaye il for other, to say what js de-
narded nv this staterf tbin5s The rebel
ds;lv pansrs in general alterm.iacknowlsdoed
the truth Of All we have affirmed utnsnal
Iv close their .hnsive editorisIg hv dacIor.
ing thas even such treatment i, better than
the invading Yankees deserve. The "Ex-
omipar" in @ racant ortioIa haorud,aJ