The Weekly Perrysburg journal. [volume] (Perrysburg, O. [Ohio]) 1861-1???, 1863-12-09
Letter frOm the Assistant SurgeOa Of
the iOOth Regiment D. '. 1.
TIE PRISONERS AT RICHMOND.
The BarborouS Treatment In
fliCted or our Brave Men.

Robert Johnson. Assistant Surgeon of the
Tooth Regiment, 0. V. l., one of the sur.
gcons recently released from the dcns of
starvation and death in Richmond, has
written letter, dated at Washington, Nov.
20, 1868, which gives an interesting ac-
count of the brutality and suffering to which
our brave soldiers are subjected by the au-
thoritics at Richmond. We have only room
for few of the most important extracts of
his letter. lie says
Their, are now about 200 officers in Libby Prison,
They are connued to the building, and have no op-
portunity tor exercise, except by wolking IN the
prison rooms There are seven rooms occupied by
the prisoners, each l02 feet in length by 40 in
width One of these is used as dining room, and
parts of others are occupied by cooking stoves.
But few of the windows are glaa ID, and have to be
closed up with boards or canvas, which excludes
light aud air at the same time. They have lately
been furnished with two stoves for each room, but
no wood has been provided consequently We had
to keep walking about 10 be anything like comfort
able The suffering from cold, from lack OF fire ia
the daytime and of bedding at night, has been very
great. Many OF the officers had no blankets through
the month of October, until furnished by the L, :.
SANITARY Commission. | was there nearly three
weeks before had u blanket. Many Jared much
worse in that respect.
The ration furnished has gradually been reduced
in quantity and quality until now ii is next To
nothing. During September, We had about y tb
good soft bread from to O2. fresh beef OF bacon
and one pint Of rice 20 ten men. Occasionally we
had no beef or bacon. This was the best ration We
had while was there, and have named every
thing received, except a little vinegar and salt
Now they have about a ID of the mcanest corn
bread that can be gotten up with unstted meal and
water, rice as before Occasionally money, and
meat only once in 4 while eve had none for four
days before | lett. Sometimes sweet potatoes
were issued in lieu Of meat. This ration was Sd
small to be of little value-somCtmcs one or
and even as little as quarter of one has been is
sued in place (as they say of half pound OF
| good fresh bect,
This ration is not sufficient to sustain life, aud
were it II for the boxes Of provisions sent from
| home, and the provisions bought and brought into
! the prison, the officers would bo dying OF starva.
! ton, as the mcu are on Belle Island.
| The mess to which Colonel Hayes and several
! others of the Tooth Regiment belonged, bought a
small stove. They paid $500 for it. Stoves art
| scarce here.
II the "dcar ones AZ home" but knew the JOY
| With which letters aui boxes of provisions are re
! etivcd at Libby, think more would be sent. 1t i,
common saying there. when an officer has rc
caivcd box "Gou will not sleep any to night :
and speak from experience when say this as true
\ little butter, sugar, bacon, &C., costing nothing
! home, and easily sent, is valued above all price
| Wien received. Said Lieutenant Colonel Henry
| 10th Kentucky " The happast day of my life wa.
/ the day l received my first box. l was nearl,
starved, and was so glad to get something good t
| eat that could not sleep a wink"
! There are $500 men Belle Isle, and SOM
1000 or 5000 in the city. What | say of them
| learned from Lieutenant Colonel Boyd and others
who were on the Island every day. to distribute thu
| clothing sent by our Government to the prisoners
/ Colonel Boyd is Chief Quartcrmaster of the 20tl
Army Corps. Until the lst instant, the meu suf
ferel intensely from cold. Very few had an,
/ blankets. The rebel government has not furnished
blanket or an article Of clothing to a singh
| prisoner; on the contrary, they allow them to b.
| robbed of blankets, overcOats, and everything tn
rebel soldier takes fancy for All through Sep
! tcnbcr, October, and part Of November there wer
hundreds of them without tents or shelter of an
kind and As most Of them were captured in warn
| weather, they had no ovcrcolts. Their ligh
clothing was worn cut, and most of thom wer
nearly naked.
Great as was the suffering from cold, it wa
| light compared with that Of hunger. When Genera
Dow was sent over to distribute the clothing sen
i bS the |. s Sanitary Commission, they fulowe
him in crowds, saving, General, We can do as t
clothing, if you will only give US JrclH Bread
what we want" They were in starving cond
ton Hundreds Of them have died from starvatio
and exposure. They have the same ration that
issued to the i!ers, but cannot buy in the city
and have had nothing sent to them from home
Colonel Boyd told me, on the 22l inst, Their
were three dead this morning when went over
I Those who are sent To the hospital are generally
much reduced as to render treatment useless. a
high as fifty have died in one day. This, Of COURSE
is more than the average mortality. statemeu
that " som5 m.n were brought from the Island t
the hospital and that one died irving to eat a pieC
Of bread before being put to bed" was published
AMI by some denounced AS false. 2dis literal
true. Doctor Daniel Msekcr, Medical Director
General Milruy's army, was in the hospital, an
was an eve witness of the horrid scene. | hay
seen men hardly able to be about, marched throug
the streets in November, barGtnoted and Union o
, fccrs have been threatened for throwing them Ol