The Lancaster gazette. [volume] (Lancaster, Ohio) 1863-1886, 1864-04-21
Letter from the Ist Ohio.
KNOXVILLE, TENNESSEE,
Anril Ath 1861


Ofall the places have ever seen,
this Knoxville, grand citadel of the
Switzerland Of America, lis certainly
the most uncouth and vile. Here can
be seen, in all their pristine glory and
loveliness, the bogus refugee, who has
fled from his mountain home to escape
Secession steel and lead, but who in
all likelihood never saw Oppression
except from northern dungeon
Here, too, is the crippled soldier with
an empty coat sleeve, an arm lost in
the service; your heart goes out in SYM
pathy with him until you discover the
"SeU' and ascertain that the lost arm
is strapped closely to his side. Here
can be seen soldiers drest in citizens
cloths; citizens in soldiers clothes;
baudy women in mems clothes; drum
ken niggers arm in ann witt drunken
white loafers; gay and gallant Lieu
tenants and Captains promenading in
the sparkling brilliance of the noon
day sun with Americas daughters Of
African descent, while the aces, duceS,
and trays, (privates, corporals and
sergeants,) follow in the wake with
longing eyes. Here, too, are gamb-
ling hells, where "threc pluck one" is
the motto, and where four kings and
an ace are beaten by two knaves and
a sling-Shot; whiskey shops, where, at
80 cents per drink, person can get
the delirium tremens, the smallpox
and black eye, all in the course of q
half day, Brothels, such as might be-
come the "bottomless pit" are here in
thick profusion, where night is turned
into day and day into night, where
black and white, male and female,
mingle together in one loathsomc,
saddening, heart sickcning, chaotic
mass offilth and decomposition. Eat
ing-houses also abound, where the
kitchen, slop barrel, dining room and
ticket office are all in the same room,
and an epicurean's eye and tooth can
always tell which domestic cooked his
meal by the color of the hair in his
bean-soup. To sum up, Knoxvile's in
sides are in state of decomposition,
and the scums thrown to the surface
by internal festerings, find a safe lodg-
ment in the many guard-houses, bull
pens, jails and prisons with which the
city is supplied, where, although grub
and bedding are scarce, the lack is
more than compensated for by the
plentitude of filth and uncleanliness,
by rags and tatters, by the most hide
GUS yells and whoopings, and by un-
limited quantities of the old Egyptian
plague,-army graybacks of the larg-
est size and calibre.
You wish to know why all this is?
why "these things pass us like sum-
mer cloud without" the Provost Mar
shal's special wonder?" I'll tell you.
The majority of the people here are
scamp followers" "knucks," "cracks-
men" "Shoulder-hitters," confidence
men" etc, who, blended together with
the army play offs" who "'possumed"
sick when their commands left for the
front, constitute one of the most God
forsaken, law-dcfying, conglomerated
masses of vice and immortality that
Heaven in its mercy over permitted to
exist. Turn we now to the other side
of the picture. Hyperion to Satyrl
"Brownlow's Wing and Rebel Ven
tilator" still spreads the gospel accord
ing to the sainted Parsons doctrine,
viz; that the road to hell is paved with
rebel bones, and that none can enter
heaven except original Union men.
The roomsro of the Christian Com
mission and Sanitary Store are doing
their work Of love in an appropriate
manner and many a hearty "God bless
you" goes up for the unknown donor,
who in the distant North knows not
the full merit Of the charitable dona-
ton. ."'
Religious exercises are conducted by
four different denominations-Metho-
dists, Baptists, Bpiscopalians and Ro"
man Catholics. Their influence is at
last being felt, and better grade of
morals will shortly supercedc the
present doplorable state of affair.
have never seen but two streets in
tho City-Gay and Main-although
there is a dozen other avenues, foot
paths, traces, trails, or what-nots. All
these are jam'd and Grand with bard
ware, dry goods, sutler and military
stores-no artisans or mechanics
shops, none of the truc-blue Yankee
thrift and enterprise which competi-