Daily Davenport Democrat. [volume] (Davenport, Iowa) 1864-1874, 1864-10-26


JOHN +. MILFORD,
Major and Assistant gent for Exchange
HE REASON FOR TIE KEJECTIoS-THE Negro
/ TIE ONLY OBSTACLE.
TIE wrongs, ndignitcs and pri
vations suffered by our (whue) soldl rs
would move me to consent to anything Il
procure their exchange, EXCEPT TO bartc,
away the honor and faith Of the Govern
incnt of the United States, which has beer
! solemnly pledged to the CDLORED soldiers
in its ranks
| BENZ F. BIZ LER,
Maj. Gen. and Agent of Exchange.
All oh6r questions between
us may be postponed for future settlement
but the fair exchange of cytored soldiers and
Of their white officers will be insisted on by
the Government BEFORE ANOTHER REIi
Ell SOLDIER OR OFFICER WILL Be
EXCHANGED.
WILLIAM WHITING,
Solicitor OF the War Department
now THE WHITE SOLDIERS SUFFER AND DIE.
From the memoral of the thiIty-,ive Thousand
pcrishing prisoners in the Pen ot Pestiience
and Famine. at Andersonyii'c Ga.
TIT SITUATION oF THE MtN.
10 the Presiaentet the Lnited .stot.s:
These tl4iriy-five
thousand are confined in a field of some
| thirty acres, enclosed by a board fence.
heavily guarded. About ore third have
various kinds of Indifferent shelter, or even
hade of any kind, aud are exposed 10 the
| storms ana rams, which are VI almost daily
occurrence; the cold dcws of the mig bit and
the more terrible effects Of the sun striking
I, ~, II
unprotected heads. This mass Of mon los
tie and crowd each other up and down tho
limits of their enclosure, in storm or san,
and others lie down upon the pitile>s ,arth
at night with no other covering than the
clothing upon thor backs, few Of tl4on nav-
ing even Il blanket. Thou
sands arc without pants or coat, and hun
ireds without even a pair of drawers to
cover their nake,;ness
THE scANTv RATTnNs.
To these men, as indeed to ali prisoners,
there is issued three, iuarters OF pound OF
bread or meal, and onc-eigh,h OF pound Of
meat per day. This is the entire ration,
and upon it the prisoner mist live or die
The meal is often unsIted aud sour and
the meat such a in the North is consigned
to the soapmaher.
tkSE>S AND DEATH.
But u starvation and exposure, to sun
and storm, add the sickness which prevails;
to most alarming and terrible extent on
AN AVERAGE ONE III NDRED DIE
DAILY. Il needs no comment,
no efforts at word painting. to make such a
picture stand cat boldly in the most horrible
colors.
DESPAIR AID IpfocY-DEATH couRTED.
They arc fast losing hope. and becoming
utterly reckless Of life. Numbers, crazcd
by their suiicrings, wander about in state
Of idiocy; others deliberately cross The
dead line" and are rcnorselessly shot
down.
THE CHARACTER OF THE MEN LEFT TO sycu A
FATE Ply LINCOLN.
Few Of them have been captured except
in the front OF battle, in deadly encounter
and only when overpowed ~ numbers.
They constitute as gallant a portion of our
armies as carry our banners anywhere If
released, they would soon return to the ar
my again to do vigorous battle for our cause
WHY THEY SUFFER AND DlE-TiE MEN UNDER
STAND THE REAsoN-TnE NEGRO
We are told that 1.-THE only obstacle in
the way Of our exchange is the status Of ne
gro soldiers captured fiom our armies the
'nitcd States claiming that ,.c cartel covers
all who SER under its flag. and the Con
irdcratc States refusing to consider the col
orcd soldiers. heretofore slaves, as prisoners
Of war.
| THE NEGRO PRISONERS FOR WHOM Orr WHITE
NES ARE sAcRiFiCED-How THEY LIVE
AND ARE CARED FOR
The blacks, on the contrary, are seldom
imprisoned. They are distributed among
the citizens, or employed on government
works. Under these circum Instances they re-
ccivc enough to eat ard are worked no
harder than they have been accustomed 0
be. They are neither starved nor killed off
10y the pestience in the dungeons of Rich
mond and Charleston. 1t is true they are
again made slaves but their slavery IS free
dom and happiness compared with the cruel
existence imposed upon our gallant men.
They are not bcrcft OF hope, as are the white
soldiers, dying by picccmeal. Their chances
Of escape are tenfold greater than those OF
the white soldiers, aud their condition. in
all its lights, is toicrablc in comparison with
that Of the prisoners of war now lancuish
ing in the dcns and pens IF secession.
VIEWS AND CONCLUSIONS OF TUE MEMog:ALrs1.
We arc profoundly impressed
with the conviction that the circumstances
cf the two classes Of soldiers are SO widely
different that the government can honorably
consent to an exchange, waving for time
the cstab ishcd principle Justly claiming tc
be APP licable in the case Let thirty five
thousand suffering. starving and diving en-
listed men aid This appeal. By prompt and
decided action III their behalf. thirty. tiy,
thousand heroes will be male happy. 70,
the eight hundred commissioned officers now
pi isoners We urge nothing Although de-
sireus of returning to our duty, we can bea,
imprisonment with more fo,titude if the en-
listed men, whose sufi'erings we know to be
intclerablc, were restored to liberty and te
lie.
FOR McCLELLAN.-A commander Of ,
Kentucky regiment Of veterans near Allan
ia writes letter to the Louisville Journa
in Which he says: "There are but few q
my regiment left, after nearly three yesrs
hard service with the front Of the army bu
| am proud to say that large majority O
them that are left are for Little Mac for on
| next President