Fremont journal. [volume] (Fremont, Sandusky County [Ohio]) 1853-1866, 1864-06-17
THE REFIINEMENT or MTRDER.

Early IN the war 1t was charged that the reb-
els hoisted the black flag and adopted ''No quar-
ter" as their battle cry. Whether the charge
was true or not is now Of little consequence. :
Their acts are Of more consequence than their
threats, and events have shown that the black
flag never covered atrocities greater than those
perpetrated by the rebels. 4ae
Treason and murder are tittingly linked to-
gether IN the estimation Of the world The lat
ter Is a natural consequence of the former, and
the blacker the treason the more atrociOus the
crimes that result from it. Notreasen has been
greater than that of the. Southern rebels No
cruelties have been more horrible and fendish
than those inflicted by them on their wretched
victims. s,I..F....,lss
We pass over the butchery at Fort Pillow. 1t
has not been equalled except IN the orgies of
savage tribes, but even those horrid scenes fade
into comparative insignifcance beside the grea-
ter cruelties elsewhere. True, unarmed and
unresisting men were slaughtered in cold blood
and buried in graves of their own digging. -
True, wounded and helpless men were pinned
to the earth with bayonets, or flung in the river
to drown. True, children were killed before
their mothers eyes, and then the screaming wo-
men knocked on the head with muskets; but
all this is comparatively excusable. The un-
happy victims had defended themselves Stub
bOrnly against their captors, and only yielded
WIeu uldDlo 10 nOlI OUT longer, depending on
the laws of nations, of civilized war; and of
common humanity for their safety. The victO-
riOus force, knowing nothing of national honor,
civilized, warfare, or common humanity, butch
cred their prisoners, as perhaps some other saw
ages might have done. ~ s e- ....a
The victims of Fort Pillow died and were at
rest. Their sufferings were soon over. Butthe
thousands of brave men who at other places fell
into the hands of the enemy, and were taken to
southern prisons, were doomed to prolonged
wretchedness and miserable death. Better
the sharp steel and the murierous bullet on the
banks of the Miss, than slow starvation and
wasting disease IN Libby prison or Belle Isle.
1t is now many months since the country was
startled and shocked at the report Of the atroci-
ties committed by the rebel authorities on the
Federal prisoners in Richmond and elsewhere
1t was said that our men, thrown into their
hands by the chances of war, were being de-
hberately starved to death in order to unfit
them forseryiee when exchanged "a The report
was too monstrous to be believed and was set
down as an exageration of some individual case
in an entire system. g l3lss -.f r
But proofs began to accumulate. Escaped
prisoners testified by their physical condition of
the truth of the story, and at length, when an
exchange Of prisoners was reluctantly permit
ted by the enemy, all doubts were at rest. The
crowd of emaciated, enfeebled, imbecile, and
dying wrecks of humanity that arrived at An
napOlis needed no skilled pen to narrate the
horrible story of their wrongs. The ghastly
skeletons, still retaining a senblanee of life,
were more eloquent than wOrds.fe
Death was already busy among them. They
died like rotten sheep on their passage up from
Fortress Monroe They perished daily when
taken under the care of the authorities at An
napolis, and when everything possible was done
to restore them to health. OF the whole num-
Der received one third are expected to die from
the effects of their cruel treatment and no con-
hdence is expressed in saving more than one
half. Even these viii be mostly ruined for life.
their constitutions broken, and their bodies en-
feebled with disease. The inurderers had done
their work but too well.
The Committee on the Conduct of the War
have visited these victims, have taken down
their evidence, and will soon spread it. in all
it's horrible details, before the people. They
have done more. Full length photographs have
been taken OF q number of the released prison.
ers, and copies of these will accompany the re-
ports No written or printed account can con-
vey to the mind so clear an understanding of
the terrible sufferings of our unfortunate broth
ers, sons, and fathers, as those unimpeachable
witnesses. No other evidence of such afro
ciOus cruelty would be credited. In some of
them the very seniblahce of humanity is lost
Our armies are now in sight ofthe erebel sham
bles. The boom of their cannon even now |
sound family in the dull ears of our brave sol
diers who are dying slowly within the rebel |
walls-starving to death. Thousands of gal |
lant hearts are without, eager to release their
dying brethren. From hundreds of thousands
of homes in the North ascend nightly prayers
that swift retribution may follow slow murder.
Whilst we write comes to hand the report of
the deaths of Union soldiers in the rebel pris-
Ons at Columbus, Georgia, from February 9th
to March 3Ist. In the five weeks thus includ-
ed the deaths number three hlndrsd dRd seUea-
,y-fre. How long o Lord, how long?"-
L2eueltllsd Herald