New-York daily tribune. [volume] (New-York [N.Y.]) 1842-1866, 1863-08-19
OF RONEs IN RICHMOND.

One of the plclsanteSt OF our American poets
has, in her collection of lyrics, pretty copy
of verses entitled "Bones i'll the Desert
II offers hardly subject for lady's pen, but
will not some of our versifyers-Dr. Holmes
or some other Of the funny singers-try his
hand upon "Bones in Castle Thunder Rich
mond, Va" Prisoners have always been
Obliged to vary the tcdium of incarceration
by variety OF cxpedients, mental or mcchan-
zeal. Sometimes they have tanned rats-some-
times they have cultivated spiders-sometimes
they have drawn and written upon the walls
of their cells; in Castle Thunder, our unior-
tunate Yankee captiycs have betaken them
selves to the study of osteoloey. The facilities
for this naturally dry pursuit were considerable
in the prison. The peculiarly of their rations
had most exceedingly alternating effect upon
their own famished frames; aud any captive de-
sirous Of ascertaning the number Of ribs in
side Of himself had only to take OF
his garments, and count at his leisure, by the
aid of the naked eye. In the comparative
department of the science, the chances were
equally good for the scanty ncsh-pots which
were brought TO them contained bones OF the
most curious description, and such as did not
seem native TO Christian trenohers. Inyestiga-
ton followed, when behold il became apparent
that the bones were not bovine, nor porcine,
nor gallnaceous, but Enthusiastically and lndis-
pu,ably equine-the skeletons of defunct cayal-
~ steeds which had very little flesh on them
while living, and still less after they were
cooked Horror seized our poor prisoners-they
had been eating horse, and very poor horse at
that There could be no doubt about it-those
shins which swan in the soup were not the
shins of oxen, Of calves, of cows, or OF silly
sheep but they had formerly carried the
ncehing steed and his rider either into
battle or ont of battle-which last is
probably the operation most likely 10 have been
performed with creditable velocity. Think of a
horse, after figuring at Gettysburg, and perhaps
receiving fatal wound dragging his way pain
fully back to Richmond to die, to be cut up, 10
be cooked, and to be eaten, by the enemies of
his country What an insult TO the memory Of
the brave beast After all his services TO the
Conference.-The manger guililess for
months of oats-aiter giving up his life to the
cause Of Southern civilization, that Southern
civilization should send him 10 pot in this I'M
gracious manner, and entomb him in the Stom-
achs of the loscl Yankees
We do not wonder that the Confederate pur-
yeyors were ashamed of the whole business, as
in this wise it turned out that they were; for
one of our prisoners, being about TO be released
by u flag of truce, packed away a lot of these
CHASTITY evidences of southern culinary skill in
his carpet-bag, that he might exhibit them to
his weeping friends upon his return. The COM
mandant at Castle Thunder persisted i'll exam-
ming the retiring baggage, and the poor horse
bones were discovered There could be but
one intention in thus carrying bones to the
North-they were to be used a. evidence of the
nakcdness of the land in Richmond. So the
bones were coniiscated, and the enterprising alb
straclor sent back, with much passion, to eat
more horse, or to staryc
The commandment should have remembered
that We have other evidence already of the prev
alent short.commons in Richmond. Our Rebel
prisoners are not usually what you may call
Falstails-thosc whom We have seen have had
rather lean and hungry look, not like CasSius,
from thinking too much, but, most decidedly
like Shakcspcarc's apothecary, from eating too
little. They might then have let us have those
horsc.boncs, as touching evidence of the skele-
ton state to which the Coniederacy is reduced
The exhibition of them would have had very
moving influence upon the ptiiul CoppeThead
mind !