The Baltimore County union. [volume] (Towsontown, Md.) 1865-1909, 1865-07-22
Mlisfellalle0Illts. II
! Casualties of war.

Official estimates in the War Department
compute the number of Deaths in the
Union armies since the commencement Of
the war, including the starved prisoners, at
three hundred and twenty FIVE thousand
There have doubtless been fully two hun
dred thousand Southern soldiers removed
by disease and the casualties of battle, so
that not less than FIVE hundred and twenty
FIVE thousand lives were sacrificed in this
unholy contest, begun and prolonged by
the South in their vain effort to build,up q
new Republic and strengthen the slave
power. Fii"
Our, greatest losses in any one campaign
occurred at Gettysburg, when 23,267
Union soldiers were killed, wounded and
taken prisoners. Hooker's campaign in
1863 in the Wilderness, ranks next to Get
tysburg as far as regards Union losses, they
having amounted to 20, 600 though generally
reported at 10000. Burnside lost IL, 900 at
Fredericksburg, Mcclellan IL ,426 at An
tietam, Porter 9, 900 at Gaines Mills Rose
Grams l2,O85 at Murfreesboro', and 1851
at Chickamauga, and Sherman about 5000
in the two days battle around Atlanta.
The official reports of General Grants
losses from the time he crossed the Rapi-
dan until receiving the surrender of Lee
compute them at $4,000. In the various
engagements fought by Grant in the West,
1858 at Pittsburg Landing, 9,875 in the
several contests around Vicksburg, and in
the attack on Missionary Ridge about T.
600. s,,,..1 ,,rs.I,ov 81, aa.slso tefsrf .gltif
Y Though our losses in many of the cam
paigns have been heavy, yet they fall below
those incurred in some of the European
wars. This has been due to considera-
Bile extent, to the efficiency OF the Medical
department and the lavish amount Of sup
plies, at least one-t third greater than those
furnished to amy European army. Areport
recently made to the imperial Academy OF
Medicine by Chem, Physician of the
French Army, estimates the losses of that
army in the Crimean War as follows -
Killed on the field of battle or missing,
l0,24O lost. in the Semilante, 7O2 /; died Of
various diseases at Alma, 3,094; died of
cold, appoplexy, ETC., before Sebastopol,
4,342; died in the field and general hospi-
tai, u, ,247; total, 95,6l5. Thus, of 309,264
men sent by France to the Crimea, about
third found soldiers grave. fno .d.i
The siege and reduction of Jerusalem
resulted, says Josepbus, in the loss ofgl,-
100000 lives. 10000 Persians were placed
h0rs de combat at the battle of Arbela, and
100000 Carthagenians in the engagement
at Palermo, IL, 900 infantry and $1,000 cav
airy perished on the fatal field Of Isus.A
Spain lost 100000 lives during the pros
ecution of the Arabians, and 100000 in
expelling the Jews. Frederick the Great
inflicted a loss Of 10000 on the Austrians
in the conflicts Of Leuthen and Leignitz.-
The battle of Jenna, and the lesser engage
ments Immediately following, cost the Pru-
sian army over SOC, 900 men. AT the bat
tie of Leipsic, the French suffered casusal-
ties to the number OF $4,000, and the
Sweeds and their allies 10000 more. 5O,-
600 French and Russian soldiers lay dead
and dying on the field after the battle Of
Moscow; and Napoleon again lost 47,0Q0
men at Waterloo, and the Duke of Well
lington $4,000 more. d isnfo las saei9 ia
There is strong feeling of hostility en-
tertained among the rank and file of our
armies towards the medical profession, for
which there is undoubtedly some grounds.
The sudden and pressing demand for army
surgeons called q large number of inexpe-
rienced Esculapians into the field, and no
doubt hundreds Of soldiers have been de-
prived of their limbs when amputation was
unnecessary. Yet, when we compare the
general sanitary condition of our armies
with that of other military organizations,
and consider the care of the Government
for its troops, and the comparatively small
number Of deaths from sickness. there is
certainly occasion for thanksgiving. Aswe
have seen above, seventy-four thousand
Frenchisoldiers,s ,sor one fourth Of the whole
number persisted from sickness in the Cri-
mean war. vol tsi aA .15''s','' ~
Thirty thousand Russian troops also died
in the Crimea during few weeks time from
camp disease, and five mistake not, thirty
five per cent. of the English troops were
prostrated with sickness when Florence
Nightengale entered upon her mission Of
mercy. of thirty thousand troops that
composed the English army under Yelling
ton, in 1909, six thousand were sick in the
hospitals. In, 1871, the Portuguese army,
numbering forty four thousand, were on the
sick list. Nearly one-half Of our entire for
ces of the Revolution, forty-seven per
cent, were at one time unfit for duty. s.ii
There have been no full tables Published
of the sanitary condition Of our armies du-s
ring the four years struggle, but separate
reports show that the losses from sickness
bear no comparison with those above. OF
the entire Army of the Potomac, there
were only FIVE per cent. on the sick list du-
ring the first months OF 1862.