Yorkville enquirer. [volume] (Yorkville, S.C.) 1855-2006, 1864-10-05

With this We can succeed. Ii ono nail
the men now absent without leave will re
! turn to duty, we can defeat the enemy
| With that hope I am going to the front.
/ may not realize this5hope, but I know there
are men there who have lookad death ip the
face too often to despond now. Let no one
despond. Let no one distrust, and renem.
berthat if genius isthe beau ideal, hope is
the reality. ~ hs'5's - = -
The President then alluded TO the objects
for which the meeting had assembled, and
expressed the hope that the refugees and
exiles would bewell provided for. Hisr
marks were often interrupted by applause.
The Confederates at Elmira.
Some account was given by gossiping
Northern correspondent, some time ago, Of
| the Confederate prison at: Elmira, N. u
The following fuller AID more interesting
| sketch We find in the New York Epeaing
Rost:& = E.aiss. < :5iZss - H'se9s
The rebel sncampment is situated onths
Chemung river, onlysabout a mile and q
half from the business centre of Elmirs.-
That stream is rapid and clear; the camp,
close to the bank, is upon dry and hand
some meadow: rich farming region fur
hishes. the needed supplies; and altogether
the situation, for health and conysnieneeis
=
not surpassed anywhere.
The quarters consist Of barracks sufficient
for the accommodation Of 800 rebels, and
tents have been pitched for two thousand
more. The rebels tunder' canvass are even
more comfortable than their fellows in bar.
racks. More tents will be put as they may
be required. = ~
The area ofthe grounds is not far from
forty acres. One-half the space is now
occupied by the quarters which stand
closely together; and excluding from the
account the cook houses, Where all the ra-
tioEs are prepared, tits estimated there are
fully eighteen acres Of rebels: When all
those to come up are in camp, more than 20
acres will be covered>by them. -
There are two leading objects in guard
ing the rebels. Thstirst of course, to pre-
vent their escape; the Second to prevent
| communication between them and persons
| outside theiines. Any person approaching
thesrabels is regarded with suspicion, and
promptly ordered of, as the rebels are who
would pass. the prescribed boundary. -.
But'the plan of thisw work is not such as
would naturally be supposed. AS has al
ready been said, the number Of soldiers en-
ployed is comparatively small: The camp
| is situated in a;meadow ;surrounding it is a
fence twelve feet high. The length Of the
fence is about one mile. On the outsidesof
it, from the top, there 10 scafold, which is
continuous, and passes entirely around the
camp. The soldiers march onthis scafoid.
Every few rods, a small house, like tow.
er, has been constructed. In fair weather
the soldiers, who act as sentinels, keep the
lookout exclusively from the scaffold, but,
in unpleasant weather, they may use the
houses, in each of which are cut two holes,
one in the direction of the rebels, and the
other in the direction of the public. The
holes are large enough to. admit of the
aiming and using rifle at close quarters
Few, if any, private soldiers are admitted
to the enclosures of the rebels; but some
commissioned officers are constantly detail
| ed. and have charge of them, assisted by
sergeants. The .sergeants have recently
been found insufficient in number for the
work, and rebels act in their places. The
| principal duty of the .sergeanta is to pre-
serve order and, call the rolls No difficult
ty has been caused by the employment of
rebels. = .-
The prisoners are allowed to talk only
with eaehsather, and with the Federal off,
GERS who have. control of them; and nobody
is permitted by the officers to enter the
camp, underany pretence or for any reason
whatever, except he, have a pass from the
Commissary General of prisoners at Wash
ington. So travellers who wish, for special
reasons, to obtain interviews with the reb-
els; relatives of the prisoners, who desire to
call upon. them, and profess to have the
most urgent and innocent private business
with them, secession sympathizers, who
would coadole with tho prisoners; profess
sional humanitarians, seeking to do good,
are alike rigidly refused admission to the
camp. -, j: =ss .v -
But the rebels write many letters-some-
times six hundred in one day :; and persons
who wish to communicate with them may
do so freely by lstter-only the letters must
be short and contain no improper informa-
ton. - 90 -..,zs- -.
Some of the prisoners work., and are paid
by the Government. This work is done ex-
clusivcly for their OWN benefit; that Is to
say, theyEaro efccting improvements on
their grounds, baking bread or cooking
| other food, and are besides, making various
articles for sale. The average number of
rebels daily occupied in the different kinds
of business, which, through the liberality
Of our authorities, they are enabled to fol-
low in camp for, their OWL, profit, is about
three hundred and the, number of appli-
cants for work, beyond the proportion who
can be employed under present arrange
ments, is.gensrally more than a hundred. ,
=