Richmond enquirer. [volume] (Richmond, Va.) 1815-1867, 1864-09-02
HORRORS OK TIE BATTLE FIELD
1000 UNION SOLDIERS LYING IN
BURIED IN TIE WILDERNESS.

Since the breaking out Of the rebellion, .
,-5g: dea! i!n- het: said ub3rt .ao horrors OF
,9..s, nni n;ae!, has bHc1 written descriptive
! 81. is;ioAlie!l, cgvaTel wi;h ho dead and tho
DYING. S3e.Hs have leon w;ircsshd that vol
lrig-: aur.G! u tho eUu:csts hearts. and shnkc
ths,trcnnsst nerves. So much concerning the
;ieroens6s o! tho var has bean written and
pu.iishcci, ,het tho public mind has been made
familiar Eilh the stories Of the deadly strife
tas; bag he,n 30 long raging in our land. The
history ct battle soems but Duplicate &C
count 6! shu one chat preceded il. The an
noau5a,aent that thousands have been killed
scarcely commands Is moments reflection, and
sor.e ola cyaa disappointed if they Era not
Informed t,nt :. days lighting has not result
el IN a)4erirg tho Held with the slain.
Il auy ut o,.r readers have failed to renlizc
tue magnitude 0T TIC war and its terrible con-
sequouaca, anj ihCse mh0 compose our nrmloa,
lot them ,cruse tho following account of tho
Dead in the Wilderness" 1twas written by
Li.u.. Bsilr, Of the 10Th regiment n. Wv,
from Anandale, TN the l:h inst. Ho says
sha;, aler crossing tho Rapidan, within
spuca Of fifteen miles, thirty thousand carohSes
lay rotting upon the ground-and fifteen thou
sand or them had belonged TO our army. What
moro dn va naei to toll us Of the terrible fight
ing Ct CRAFTS campaign.
Il djL not xpoct, whon left you Mt koches
Tor .!,,: IrhmisGi TO write you. that should
visit the battlciiclds Of the. Wilderness again
Vt ,!,is early period. ! arrived in camp on
Sunday afternoon after leaving you, and was
placed On duty % officer Of the guard; and
tho day following vas detailed as an officer to
accompany an expedition Of 500 cavslry to
guard an ambulance train, and rescue our
wounded who wore yet in the hands of the
oueny, whom they had placed under guard
and were removing to Richmond % fast as
po-sitle, as p,isonerp. We arrived at the
United States Ford, On tho Rapidsn, Friday
night; crossed Saturday morning. and at 10
o'clack found deserted hospital where the first
thrss days Of the battle were Sought. Within
..Lout C. milo Of this the dead armies had been
Buried, but from this to tho next hospital
shout rtsen miles, the doad remain rs death
found them, with tho exception Of their
clothing.
"Ths rebels had stripped them Of boot. and
Shoes and nearly all their clothing, and where
there was uu exception, tho pockets were all
turncd. 1t ia L scene l shall not sttompt to
describe, and go utterly awful that could no.
do it. 1t is estimated that fifteen thousand of
our men, aud as many Of the robels, lie I'M
buried here; and % six weeks havc elapsed
sinos the battle, imagination in its widest
faucies cannot begin to paint the spectacle. I
must puss it. After passing through this will
derness of death, wo found another hospital,
surprised the guards and took possession, and
found about sixty wounded, in charse, Of one
of our surgeons, he being prisoner also.
I'VE did not stop to inquire to whom or what
side they belonged. whether friend OF foo, but
a, once to put them into our am
balances, and to make our wSy out of this
wilderness and shadow of death, Fastening on
our way to Washington. An official account |
Of tho expedition will doubtless soon be made.
I'VE did not allow any taking with the men
mary Of them had oil they could bear to
sndure tho transit; and as nearly all of them
were unable to sit up, and as come Of them
asd had limbs amputatcd, we Judged s portion
would die on the way, with ell tho care We
,cuid exercise, and so they did AS to the
,are they had received. they all say that as
much had been done for them as undcr the
was possible.
"Thoy ell expressed great satisfaction that
ve had come for them, and that they were