The Cleveland leader. [volume] (Cleveland [Ohio]) 1865-1865, 1865-08-24
DAILY LEADER
DAILY, TRI-WEEKLY Il WEEKLY,
PUBLIsHKD BY TIE
CLEVELAND LEADER COMPANY.
THURSDAY, AUGUST "a, 1865.
The An0ersOnVIIIe sIaughter-Psn.

@
: We publish in another column = letter
written by the American correspondent of
the London Times, who by the way is an
Engishmsn, in which he is compelled to
sdmit that the stories of the horrible cruel
ties prscticsd upon unfortunate Union
prisoners in that pen, digniaed with the
title of the "Andersonville Military Pris-
on" were too t1us-that in spite of the
prejudice he had in favor of the Hhigh-
toned chivslryp Of the South, he is forced
to the conclusion that the array of indu-
bitAble evidence in favor of the truthfulness
Of tnoss awful stories is too overwhelming
to admit Of further doubt. He goes on to
say that the American people are not in
hueneed by feelings of mere revenge in
demanding that JEFF. Davis shall expiate
his terrible offence on the gallows; but that
they demand his execution simply on the
ground of naked justice
The tales Of tortures inflicted upon our
poor soldiers-our own brothers and friends
be it remembered-by people protesting 70
be Christians, are almost incredible. Would
that weconld, for the sake of our common hui
mainly, find some psllistion for the course
pursued by the Rebel government in liter
ally starving to death Union prisoners
in shooting them down like dogs by the
hundred-in exposing them to the rays of
q hot Southern sun, with the thermometer
at times IS high as Ito, without the SEM
blsnce of a shelter,-in compelling them
to drink water filed with fe.id hlth,-in
letting them die daily By ffIies and hun
dreds without giving them the benefit of q
hospital-in fact torturing them in every
way conceivable, in q manner that would
have made the Inquisitor General of q
Roman Catholic Inquisition, in the blood
lest days of persecution, glost with delight.
But we cannot. Not ashadow or ex-
o~se can be Oasred by the Confederate gov
eminent for torturing 10 death IL, 900 of
our own brothers. Yet we hear milk-snd.
water humsnitsrisns, like Greeley and
others of his class, and whisky-snd-wster
copperhesds, recommending that the chief
devil who ordered this Internal treatment
of our soldiers be psrdoned and allowed to
The country, that We may thus ex-
hibit in E splendid light" the msgnanim-
ity of our government.
Now, we are in favor of m~sgnanimity
as much SIS any one can possibly be; but
We wish q ~msgusnamity founded on COM
mon senss and common justice. The
American people are perfectly willing to
msgnanimous to q rebel who paid some
difference to the laws of civilized warfare
and the dictates of humanity, but when it
comes to practiciDg the ~msgnanimous
lodge on such ~blsck-Lesrted devils, scoun-
1rels and murderers as JEFF. Davis, General
Lee, Csptain Wirz, and others Of that
,lsss, who are guilty of and responsible for
.orturing to death, by starvation and ether
RELISH means, 1900 Union soldiers in a
prison, then might we as well show
Jur msgnansmity by emptying our peni-
i~entaries and jails-pard oning their in
mates, who are incompsrably superior to
he heads of the late Confederate Govern
nent in everything that makes the man.
Dur convicts sre not q 1.-THE as guilty as
he murdsrers and torturers of the poor
AndersonVille prisoners; therefore we
hould extend the same degree of mag
lsnsmity st least to them.
We say, beldly and unquallfedlY, that
{ u Government does not do It's
iNs5 "a PuHsnIn5 $500 PS.RS--s :
he Andersonville horrors, then every
member Of it deserves to be put through
precisely the same course of treatment
hat has been melted out at Ander-
The Government is bound
y every principle of justice, and good
sith to the gallant men who volunteered
o defend the Union, to see that unneces-
ary cruelties inflicted upon our hspless
captured by the rebels, should be
romptly and thoroughly punished. If
he Government fails to do this, then the
eOple should demand, in thunder tones,
he execution of all who are responsible for
ln Andersonville slaughter.