Gallipolis journal. [volume] (Gallipolis, Ohio) 1837-1919, 1865-09-21
nzr THE trial Of the fiend Wirz,

nE The trial Of the fiend Wirz,
Who SO cruelty treatedodf prisoners
atsAndersonville, is now in progress
et Washington, and sthe. testimony
} sdduced is such as to thrill with hor,
rorseEery heart that can lay elai4 to
any feeling of Humanity. o We give
below the testimony Of one or two
Witnesses, from which our readers
eau form some idea of the "awful
Help to which the f'chiyAlry of the
South ? doomed our Adnfofturdts
prisoners. That this testimony is
true, there is no doubt. Living nit
+ nesses in Gdlia2 county this DAT, will
testify to the same brutality and
savage ierocity of this man Wfrz.
That Davis, Lee, and every one of
the Southern leaders, swere priyy to
and sanctioned this most terrible of
all crimes, is now clear TO every
honest mind. Shall their :, tool
Wirz, bear the whole,load of infamy
with which the world will crown this
deed? We think not. Careful as
eur Copperhead friends are, to ex;z
elude from their columns every
thing connected with these prisons,
'.murder, will OUT and the people
will hold even that party, in great
degree,responsibie. How any sol.
dierwi aparticle Of honor in him, |
could become the candidate of this
Butternut party and look an Ander-
sonyille prisoner in the face, is more
than we can explain. Yet .such is
life,' right here in Gallia county
Soldiers, mark such men, and when
they ask you to vote the Copperhead
ticket, refer them to Andersonyllle.
'o9 JosEPH7 r AchUFF, a prisoner at
AndersonyiHe, testified % II
That having gone out with a rebel
/ guard he jumped on the rebels
back, while the two prisoners who
accompanied him took away bis gun;
hearing tho dogs in chase he and
his two companions scattered; the
witness ran into a swamp, and soon
saw five hounds and seven rebels on
horseback; the hounds were not ia
ken off of him for fifteen minutes, !
during which time he had to fight
them with his fists; he had nothing
upon him but a pair of pantaloons
made of two rebel meal sacks; he
still carried the marks of the biting
on bis legs; the horn was blown as
a signal to tear the hounds off; he
was taken before Captain Wirz, who
ordered him to be put in the stocks;
he was exposed to the sun; he was
thus punished for thirty-six hours,
and during that time had only two
drinks out of the muddy creek; when
he spoke to Wirz about this treat
ment, he was told to dry up, or he
would have his brains blown out.
ss7 Wirz struck Michigan boy over,
the head with his revolver. the re,
suit of which was that the boy died
of fits; the witness said he saw the
man called "Chickamauga". killed,
the men had nick-named 's.mutton-
head" he belonged to Illinois, and
was silly and had lost leg; the boys
having plagued him, he applied to I
Captain Wirz to go on parole: Wirz
cursed him and threatened to blow
his brains out; the man was at the
time within the dead line; Wirz or
dered the guard to blow his brains
out; the guard fired, the shot strik-
ing the man in the left side; the7vic-,
tim was carried out and died; the
witness saw Wirz lay out the dead
line in April, 1864, and heard him
give orders at that time if any man
crossed the line to shoot him; the
first nigh he went into the stockade,
on the 10th of March, 1864, he saw
Wirz kicking poor skeleton around
there, and heard Wirz curse him; he
named four officers who also wit
messed the same occurrence.
George White, of Germantown,
Pennsylvania, belonging to the Ma
rlne Corps, after being wounded, was
carried off to the hospital; the young
man requested him to tell hisdnother
he was not afraid to die; subsequent
ly he saw Whites dead body at
what was called the dead house,
where Wirz was in company with
two guards; the witness asked him if
he could not take lock of Whites
hair; 'sno," said Wirz; "if you do I'll
blow your - brains out;'' about
$50 prisoners were down at the j
creek bathing; woman on an eni-
nence was seen to nod and and wave
her handkerchief TO seminal, who
fred and shot one Of them in the
head; the sentinel for this obtsined
. 5furlough for thirty days.. so hehad
been Informed by Georgia soldier
the witness described the character
of the sufferings of the prisoners; hel
applied to Wirz 10 have the filthy
grease stopped from being thrown
into the stream, as the water was
thus injured; Wirz replied that the
water was good enough for Yankees,