Cleveland morning leader. [volume] (Cleveland [Ohio]) 1854-1865, 1864-12-13

head; the lids had lost their fullness and
refused to perform their office, leaving the
eve to glare snd stare at you, dimmed all
over with notes, dull, lfeless, despsiring.
Its orbits and temporal bones were so far
advanced thai the white enamel shons
through the skin, which s7ery moment
seemed to 'belesing its hold on its prisoners,
allowing them to escape their thraldom--
The thorax marked sll its parts The ribs
were clearly visible, for the akin, tanned
and smoked though It was, was stretched
to almost transparent tightness, till the in
terstices between the bones, were revealed,
and the curious eye almost imagined itself
peering through the pleurs into the chest
to see the terrible emscistion there. Each
struggling breath threw out the bones still
more prominently, until it seemed as If
their flmy covering would fall off like q
garment and leave skeleton indeed. The
abdomen was so shrunken that the valves
Of the digestive apparatus caused protub-
ersnces, and the digestive portions Of the
food as they passed down the intestines
swelled them until their outline could be
marked by any spectator, and the course
of the feces easily followed. The limbs
partook-of the general decay. One inch
and threequarters around the biceps, which
was q common measurement Of those
who were stout and strong as young will
lows. --.
TESTIMONY OF THE PRISONERS AS TO THEIR
TREATMENT AT. ANDERsoEVILLE, ETC.
& friend once remarked to US that he
thought that nature had given to the hu-
man skull the peculiar appearance called
ngrinninS' to remind US of our utter worth
lessness. The grin was q never end
ing sarcasm. In these faces, clothed as
thev vet were with the veil that hides the
sarcasm, that sepulchral smile was present,
the more funereal because of the medium
through which it looked. The reply to
pleasant words, or the recollection of some
kindness that had been done them in their
captivity, called up this smile-so sad, SO
solemn, so miserable, that all who witnessed
it were touched. 1t was beautiful tribute
tf. fhaiz 1raEnafh of haaEt that fra1a4 alsAoatr
all the brutalities they suffered, they would
religiously Gull some little good deed done
them to show that so-and-so was not a
Hmean man the usual term they applied
to their murderers. HThere was DR.. Todd" "
land the was the brother-in-lsw of Abra-
ham Lincoln p ehimod in another che
was a very nice man. And then they
would recount how be gave them an ounce
more Of this, or half pint more of that
or rag, OF a button, or some ordinary
medicine, evidently finding pleasure in the
recital. Most Of the prisoners seemed also
to have a lingering respect for Colonel
Iverson, Of Florence. Although his treat
ment was none of the best, perhaps, yet be-
cause it happened TO be better than that of
superlatively horrible HAnderson," they
rated him as a gentleman" and "a very
nice man" So it was with the H5isters of
Charity" who were Every good, and dress
ed in queer dress" and the people of
Charleston. The kind acts Of the
rebel regular soldiers were also
applauded, and the entire "ongs" Of
the murders of prisoners, when
they did not touch the forbidden desd-line,
was placed upon "them conscripts who
hsted all Yankees J" who were, in the
words of an emaciated French soldier Of
3 New Hampshire Artillery Regiment
CONNIE les chasseurs, heureur detirer Iss
COUP Poor withered beings How beau
tiflll it looked to the eye of the soul to see
its sisters tensnted in those frail houses,
ready at almost any time to crumble,
blessing those who had done them good,
and uttering not single word against
those who had injured them. Christianity
was in them, pure and undeRled; and we
felt ashamed Of ourselves even that there
should be men in this, happy North who
feign to tremble for social order when our
brave soldiers come home victorious from
the wars. Could such an army, producing
such men, ever endanger the liberty or
social well being of country they had
svfered to save? To that question there
canno with US as we gazed on the meek,
worn faces, thu psrched lips, and theutter,
weary, heart-breaking helplessness, an in
dignant and decisiye-Nol Some, when
questioned whether they would like to
punish their brute captors, would answer
that their jailors ought to be punished, and
that If God should ever spare them to
stand on the battlefield sgain they wonld
try to redress their wrongs. Against
whom? would ha ssksd The reSel sol
diers Oh, no but against Captain WirtE
and Lieutenant Barrett, and other petty
tyrants, old against The conscripts. They
asked, in their whole-heartedness, that
none but the guilty should suffer. In this
spirit they live: il this spirit many have
died and many will die.