The Soldiers' journal. (Rendezvous of Distribution, Va.) 1864-1865, 1864-02-24
From the Washington Chronicle Feb. 10th, 'ea
A Visit to the Hospital directory of the
United States Sanitary Commission

Inc central Off1Co OF the u nlteQ states Sanitary
Commission is located at the old residence of
John Quincy Adams, No. 244 f street, short
distance from Wizards Hotel. One of the up
per rooms of this building is occupied by that
department. of the Commission known as the
Hospital Directory
At this office four or five clerks are employed,
three of whom are regularly engaged in enter
ing the names of soldiers in large books. These
names copied from the daily reports of the
hospitals in the District of Columbia, Baltimore,
Chesapeake Beaufort, Hilton Head, Fernan-
dina, st. Augustine, and several in New Orleans,
numbering in all about fifty. Each one of these
books numbers about three hundred pages,
New York and Pennsylvania each requiring
two volumes. AS there have been sick and
wounded from every regiment in the Eastern
Department, each State has a record in one
or more of these books. The 69th New York
Volunteers, for instance, we find by referring
to the index, is on the til page. Like every
other page it has the following printed headings,
each having it's proper space, and being appro-
priately ruled off: "Date of Admission" "Hos-
pita1," "Name' Crank Company" Died.
ssDischarged," Returned to Duty eur
loughed,'' Deserted transferred For in
stance Patrick Smith is received at Lincoln Hos
pital November 10. The report indicates his adj
mission at that date so under s'date of admis-
sion,'' is written November 1O,' under s'hos-
pital'' is written ''Lincoln = under name is
written 'Smith, Patrick p under frank is
written "Ps' (for privately, and under company
is written "F,' or whatever it may be. Per-
haps in a short time morning report from
Lincoln Hospital informs the clerks that Pat
rick has returned to duty. His name is found,
and under that heading the date is written-say
December Is or, Patrick may have received
furlough to visit his friends. Then, under fur
Laughed" is written December 49, Thus it
will be seen that the soldier who gets into the
hospital, however rarely he may have written
home or however widely his letters may have
miscarried, is almost certain to be easily traced
out by any anxious friend or relative writing or
applying to the Sanitary Commission, and
answers are given free of all charge There
are, however, exceptions to this easy method of
finding the soldier. 1t sometimes happens that,
from some peculiar whim or other, the soldier
does not furnish his proper name at the hospital.
Others may be deliriously ill when received, and
unable to give reliable name Some of the Ger
mans, and indeed Americans, have such peculiar
ly sounding names that they get sadly nisspelled
after two or three copyings, but they may be
easily identified by the rank and company they
were in, and by their given name.
We think that many in the country would be
greatly astonished at the popularity the names
of some of our brave boys. The most remarka-
BILE one we ever saw was that ofa Western SOL
dier, who was bravely defending the old flag un
der the appellation of january Blackbird." The
number of names now registered upon the books
at Washington alone is about 100000! The
greater portion of these have been returned to
duty or honorably discharged.
uI,o n,,cp Of the Directory is one of