The Nashville daily union. [volume] (Nashville, Tenn.) 1862-1866, 1864-05-03
Trealment OF rnIon prlsoners.

While the indignation of the whole
North has been excited by the recent
butcheries at Fort Pillow, an equally
sad spectacle was exhibited in Balti
more few days since SOS prisoners
we're landed at that place, Tho des-
cription given Of them is siekcning.
The Baltimore American says
Suoh pitiable set Of poor wretchos
vas never seon in this city. Their
emsciation was extreme, their feeble
ness was almost At the last gasp, their
detection was painful to behold, and
their squalor was frightful They were
starved to the verge Of tho grave, and
what was left of them was nearly de-
voured by Yermin. Some of them,
from hope too long deferred, had fallen
into a state of utter listlessness and
apathy which bordered upon idiocy
The deepening pallor, the dropping jaw,
and the glazing eyes told that others
had only come to die-that it was too
late for outstretched arms to save-too
late to dispel the evening shadows that
were gathering around them.
As another example of the manner
in which our soldiers, in the hands of
the rebels are treated we viii call at
tention to an extract from Salisbury,
North Carolina, paper, which we pub
lished a few days since It declared
that unless an exchange Of prisoners
were commenced soon, the Confederate
authorizes would profit little by it, as
the mortality in the prisons was fear
full"
These facts speak volumes concerning
the barbarity of the rebels, and their
nefarious conduct toward such Of our
men as are in their power. If they
we're humanely treated; if they were
fed and clothed az rebels in our hands
we're fed and clothed, such frightful
exhibitions of wretchedness as is mic
tured by our Baltimore contemporary,
and such 8 fatality as is recorded by the
rebel sheet quoted, would never occur.
We have decidedly the advantage of
the rebels, in the number Of prisoners;
even since the late disasters; and the
government at Washington is grievous-
ly at fault, if it does not take advantage
Of this circumstance, to compel the reb-
81 authorities to treat our men better.
Up to the middle of November last,
according to official reports, the num-
Der of Confederate officers and men
captured by the Fsderals since the be-
ginning Of the war was one lieutenant
general, five major-generals, Is briga-
der generals, 1876 eolonels, LAG Heuten-
antcolonsls, pa majors, 2497 captains,
j,Sll lieutsnants, 1868 non-commig-
stoned officers, II, l56 privates, and
$500 citizens OF these, the Federals
had on hand at the date of the report,
%, go officers and men, among whom
were one msjor-geRsrsl and seven briga-
diSrs. There have been l2l, 937 Con-
federates exchanged against 1l0,866
Federal soldiers returned. The ex-
changes Of officers on both sides are
computed at their sxchangeable value
in privateA
The number Of Union prisoners on hand
in the South, at that time, would not
have more than made up the difference
between the 10000, and the 2l,0O0,
so that we had an excess of $4,000 men
in our favor Since that time, we have
had Grants captures at Mission Ridge,
and the rebel captures in Louisiana,
North Carolina, Florida, and West
Tennessee; and these will perhaps
nearly balance
With all these advantages in our
favor, there is no excuse for permitting
such barbarities as we daily witness in
Southern prisonG What we need is
more energy.