The Norfolk post. [volume] (Norfolk, Va.) 1865-1866, 1865-08-28
Jl.e aIorfolk gost.
MONDAY, AUGUST %, 1865.
Trial of Wirz.

| queeted pOstponement of the trial for q
| few days, as his associates had retired
from the case and left him alone to
manage it. He made this application,
he said, that he might become better ac-
quainted with the case, and be thor
oughly prepared for the defense. The
Court overruled the request and ordered
the case to proceed. 0. s. Baker, Esq,
then volunteered to assist Mr.. Schade in
the defense, and several special pleas
We're put in, among them one denying
the jurisdiction of the Court, and insist
ing that the charges and specifications
ought TO be quashed. All of the pleas,
except that to the jurisdiction, which
was reserved for argument, were over
ruled, whenthe prisoner counsel plead
| ed the general issue, and the case pro-
ceeded to trial. Omitting the argument
of counsel and letter, from WirZ to
| General Wilson, at the time of the cap
| ture of Macon, Georgia, in which he
asks for safeguard against the threat
ened vengeance of Federal soldiers, de-
| claring that he was an unfortunate
foreigner, who was placed in subordi-
| nate position, which was distasteful to
his sense of humanity; but there was
no alternative to his becoming the
'tooln This own words) of the Rebel
government, The bare acknowledge
ment that he was base enough to become
SO despicable ain instrument as is con-
veyed to our understanding by the term
TOOL" is calculated to excite very
little sympathy in his behalf We take
the following testimony from the New
York Neavs, paper which is strong in
it's belief in his innocence:
DR. John C. Bates testified substau.
TALLY as follows: .a...
Have resided four or five years in
| Georgia; have been a practitioner of
medicine since 1850; was an acting as
sistant surgeon called contract sur
geon" at the unreasonable prison; re-
ported for duty there September %,
1884, and left there March 2G. ....
| The witness here was shown and
identified pass given by Captain Wirz,
October II, 1865, to Assistant Surgeon
Bates.
was ordered 10 report toJ. IL. White
the surgeon i'll charge, but hearing he
was injured by IA railroad accident, re-
ported to T.. a, Stevenson; on going
into ward Is of the hospital, | saw {
number of men, and was rather shock
ed many of them We're lying, partially
naked, dirty and lousy, in the sand
Others were. crowded together in small
tents, the latter unserviceabie at the
best; | examined all who were placed i'll
my charge; on further investigation OF
matters to make myself acquainted with
the mode of doing business, the disagree
BILE impression at firstmadeo OH me wore off
more or less, as was becoming more ia
miliar with the effects of mercy; i in
quired into the rations and talked
about them; felt disposed to domy duty
and aid all the sufferers | could; they fire.
ouently asked me for teaspoonful of salt
or for orders for little sitting that came
out Of meal, as they wanted 70 make
some bread if found something better
than siftings / ordered il; spent con-
siderable of my time in writing orders;
the meat ration was cooked in different
part of the hospital; the men would
gather around me and ask for bone; of
clothing We had none; the living were
supplied with the clothing Of those who
! died; there was prolific crop of vermin
and lice; / understood the term lousy
| from personal experience; on retiring
| from the hospital / examined myself; it
was impossible for surgeon to leave
there without bringing some with him !;
as to medical attendance | found the
! men destitute, and of clothing and bed
| ding; OF fuel there was only partial
supply; as the officer of the day, shortly
after arrived there, | was III supreme
command, and it was my business TO
rectify anything wrong; found the
men as general thing destitute, partly
naked, sick and diseased; their disposi-
ton only was to get something to eat;
| they asked me for orders for potatoes,
biscuits, siftings of meal and other
things the following morning ! sat
| down and made a report on the condi-
ton of things found at the hospital the
report was sent being u novice; for some
OF the things / said, ] received written
reprimand signed by DR.. billiard for Or.
Stevenson medicines being scarce gath
cred up large quantity OF what were
the best attainable, anti-scorhutlcs, as
well as to soothe the alimentary canal,
and to cure complaints of gangrenei
think the reports were not heededi my
attention was called to patient in my
ward who was only 10 or 1t years of age;
I took much interest in him owing
to his youth; he would ask me to bring
him potato, bread, or biscuit, which
did: put them in my pocket he had
| the scurvy and gangrene; advised him
not to cook the potato but to eat it raw;
| he became more and more emaciated
his sores gangrened, and, from want OF
food and from lice he died; understood
| that it was against orders to take any
thing into the prisoners, and hence |
was shy in slipping food into nay pock-
cts Others in my ward came to their
| deaths from the same causes; when L
Went there there were two thousand or
| two thousand five hundred sick; Judge
twenty thousand or twenty-five thou
sand prisoners We're crowded together;
some had made holes and burrowed in
the earth; those under the sheds were
doing comparatively well, | saw but lit
tie shelter excepting whatingenultyihad
devised; | found them suffering with
scurvy, dfopsy, diarrhea, gangrene,
pneumonia and other diseases; when
prisoners died they were laid in wagons,
head foremost to be carried off; don't
know how they were buried; the effiuvia
from the hospital was very offensive;
if. by accident my hand was abraded, L
would not go into the hospital without
uniting a plaster on the affected part; if
| 80 sx-,tau,c xxara rautIppl hNy