Daily State sentinel. [volume] (Indianapolis, Ind.) 1861-1865, 1865-01-11

The report of the refugee relief commission
of Ohio, Geo. @. Dawes, president, shows how
severe are the sufferings occasioned by the war
in the southwest:
Few among US have any idea OF the terrible
state of misery and degradation which has fol
lowed the tramp of the contending armies
Among other reports we have received is a copy
of the following, and we might add that. at the
present moment, we have the most pressing calls
from Nashville. where fourteen thousand refu-
gees have been recei red or passed through the
city. and hundreds OF women and children are in
fields and novels. scantily clad in garments i'll
suited to the season. and daily dying from expo
sure and want
The following extracts from reports we have
received from Natchez, show the great need
there is for material aid for these suffering refu
gees:
" A large proportion Of those whom We have
aided have husbands brothers and sons in the
Union army, and this fact rests not upon state
ments only, but on positive proof.
" Banks unfortunate expedition brought ruin
upon thousands. for the people. feeling confident
of his success. openly avowed their attachment
to the Union, aud after his defeat they were left
wholly unprotected. Their houses we're burned
over their heads. and they themselves were com
PEELED to fee for their lives.
+" On both sides Of the river they are crowded
together in miserable buildings, and when those
fail, they lie often with no bed but the damp
ground, and no covering but the open sky. No
wonder that death makes such awful havoc
among them.
" In an old warehouse we found fifty seven in
one room; OF this number only twelve were able
to stand, they were so sick and weak from eI
posure and want of food.
"A sick woman lay the floor with babe 3
week old BY her side At her feet lay little child
two wears DID, wasted 20 Il skeleton by want and
disease. while her four other children lay near
her, all too sick to bring a drink of water.
Her husband is a soldier in our srmy.
Ion blanket in the corner, with few old
clothes rolled up to supply the place of pillow.
lay three little children, all very sick. Their
mother, a worn, feeble looking woman, sat be
side them on the floor. aud | stopped to
anime the little ones and inquire into their
wants, she burst into tears and exclaimed: i
am afraid nv children will all die | have no
medicines and nothing that they can eat; God
knows what will become OF u.s. her look OF
bitter despair she said this haunted me for days
afterward
81 found her husband aud son had entered our
army more than year ago. but she had lost all
track of them, and they knew nothing OF her
whereabouts
"A short distance from the building have
described in wretched shed where hogs had
always been quartered found three families IN
condition which it is impossible to describe.
The buildings had no floor and the stag
nant water stood upon the ground 10 many places
while the air within was so intolersblc that while
dealing out food and medicines | was several
times obliged to go out into the open air.
Upon the ground lay mother, grown
daughter and four other sick children. Close be
side them woman too far gone TO speak or
notice
''But need not dwell longer on these heart
rending scenes; enough has been said to awaken
sympathy in every heart that contains one spark
of feeling or humanity.
Il know that many have but little sympathy
for these refugees, denouncing them all as sc
cessionists.-and not worthy our charity. can
only say that such persons either lack heart, or
they have been superficial in their Investigations
Nv own experience with them has been quite
the contrary"