Cleveland morning leader. [volume] (Cleveland [Ohio]) 1854-1865, 1865-01-19

Rebel Surgeon Describes his Life at
Camp Chase-StnEulax Revelations
Surgeon Says he Ate Rats.
A rebel surgeon, in letter to the Rich
mond Whig, thus details his experiences
while at Camp Chase. The probability
is the whole story is a lie, in order to JUS
tlfy their barbarous treatment of our men
in the South:
That one may feel satisfied that there is
nothing very celestial about Camp Chase
life, will enumerste few incidents that
came under my observation. The reader
will please bear in mind that the "offcers'
pen" encloses an area of less than one acre,
and that within this compass we took our
exercise and did our washing and cooking;
and besides this, what was not only ofen-
siYe but proved to be pestilential, was that
the entire excrement of the prison was
contained within this space. During the
forty-four days remained we were not
allowed light one single night, nor had
we issued to us one ounce of bacon or lard;
and altough, as general thing the bread
and meat was good enough in quality, in
quantity it was distressingly small, and did
not, with the spoonful Of rice or hominy
in addition, suffice to sllsy the pangs Of
| hunger, and when, as occasionally hap
pened, the meat rations consisted Of rotten
! pickerel, there was real suffering, and we
resorted to the rats, with which the prison
sbounded, and ate them with relish, yet
not as q matter of choice, but from neces-
sity. We were allowed to purchase moth
ing whatever in the eating line from the
u1Fi iar have
Sanky, Provost Marshal of the prison
who, by way nf depression, pronounce to
be the very personifcation of tyranny and
embodiment of meanness; one whose vim
dictive bearing and despotic rule are cnly
qualified by his frauds, deception and stu
pidity-I repeat, have known applica-
tions to this functiOnary for the privilege
of buying little pepper or mustard re-
fused, and have known as much as $3.50
in United States currency offered from one
prisoner to another for single PEN
ny loaf of bread. We we're each fur-
nished with one blanket, which served
the purpose of both bed and
covering. Although application was made
10 the authorities at Washington foz the
privileges of purchasing daily, or even Oc-
casionally, any one paper they might des-
ignste the request was denied us and du-
ring my sojourn of forty-four we were kept
in utter ignorance of the current events of
the day except IS we received light through
prisoners who we're every few days arriv-
ing, or heard announced from the pRrapet
the fact that the Confederacy chad gone
up"
Among the prisoners were several cler-
gymen and number of professors of
Christianity, who nightly engaged in reli-
gious exercises. These, wishing TO cele-
brate the Lords Supper, msde application
for the liberty of buying the clements nee
esssry for the performance of this sacred
duty, and the Christian believer, distin-
guished and highly esteemed privilege; yet
this simple request addressed TO an official
in the employ of that boasted Christian
people, the "best Government the world
ever saw" was denied.
Colonel Richsrson, commanding the post,
exhibited blandness of manner and affected
kindly feeling for us, bat at heart, we had
resson to believe, felt no concern for our
welfare, as was evineed by bis refusal, when
addressed upon the subject, to adopt imms-
diste hygienic measures, the neglect of
which gave rise to several cases Of small
pox in the officers prison, to say nothing Of
the many cases that occurred among the
seven thousand five hundred and thirty
six soldiers in the "privates' pen" Be
sides this, and what is not only highly oen-
sursble, but most dsmnsbly outrageos, our
soldiers have been repeatedly fred upon,
their limbs broken, and in several instances
they have been killed, for violation of the
simplest prison rules, thee1istence of which,
at least on one occasion, had not been an
nouneed to the prisoners.