Shenandoah herald. [volume] (Woodstock, Va.) 1865-1974, 1867-08-29
From the New York World Of Saturday.
Prison ify--Andersonyiiie and
Egiaira,
RTcHMoNp. Va. August II.

Prison Mortality ndersOnViiie and
EEinira,
RTcHMoND, Va, August II.
Sri have just seen in a city paper a
paragraph credited to the World, alleging
that among the Confederate prisoners at
Elnira, during the last four or five months
Of the use Of that prison, the deaths only
amounted 10 few individuals cut of many
thousand prisoners. I am not able to con-
trovert that fact, as left there on the 18th
Of October, 1864; but If the impression
desired to be produced is that the general
mortality at that pen was slight, can
contradict Is from the record. During
a portion Of the period Of my incarceration
in the Elmira pen it was my duty to receive
from the surgeons Office each morning the
reports Of the deaths Of the preceding day,
and embody them IN an official report to be
signed by the conlmandant of the prison
and forwarded TO the commandment of the
post. entered each morning in a diary
which now lies before me, the number Of
reported deaths, and the facts demonstrate
that in as healthy a location as there is in
New York, with every remedial appliance
in abundance, with great boast Of human
ity, the deaths were relatively larger than
among the federal prisoners at Anderson
vile among a famished people, whose
quartermaster could not furnish shelter to
its soldiers, and whose surgeons were with
out the commonest medicines for the sick.
The record shows that at Andersonyille,
between the list of February and LIST Of Au-
gust, 1864, out of36, 900 prisoners, 900,
or one-sizth died, q fearful rate unquestion-
ably. But the official report Of the Elmira
pen shows that during the month Of Sep
TENDER, 1864, which was the first month
after the quota Of chat prison was made up,
oat Of less than n5sle thousand .fge hundred
prisoners, the deaths were THREE HUNDRED
AND EIGHTY SIX In other words, the aver
age mortality at Andersonville during that
period was one thirty-sixth of the whole
per month, while at Elmra it was one
t'0eaty,ffth ofthe whole. At Elnira it was
four per cent. at Andersonyille less than
three per cent.
Your informant speaks Of but nine
deaths, believe e have mislaid the paper)
during three or four months at Elmira
Perhaps. the Official record will show more
t71an three tines more deaths on a single
day of my ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS 20,
1864.
Another item which I gather from my
diary will indicate the manner in which
the medical officer at Elnlira discharged
his functions. The hospitals began to be
filed IN the latter part of August with OBJ
stiaate cases Of scurvey Men became COW
cred with fearful sores, many lost their
teeth, and many others became cripples,
and will ae cripples from that cause. The
commandant Of the post ordered report
to be made Of all the scorbutic cases in pris-
on, grave and trifing, and On the morn
ing Of Sunday, September IL, the lists
were added up, when il was found that of
$500 prisoners examined, eighteen ham
dred and fifty were tainted with scuryy.
/ The Federal government, as one of its
measures Of reconstruction, is officially and
extensively engaged in traduo:ng the
Southern people, and the facility with
which it pvocures all necessary evidence,
whether the object be to hang or to calum-
Mate, warrants the belief that we shall
have couple Of volumes year for the rest
Of the century, demonstrating the barbara
ty Of the rebels. Against SO admirable a
system of manufacturing evidence it is, Of
course, idle to oppose the feeble efforts Of
individuals, but regard the duty none
the less binding on such Of us as know the
truth to declare it; and I hope that
throughout the Southern States, intelligent
and credible men are now putting into au-
thentic form the evidences Of Federal out
RACES, the exploits of the Shermans and
Sheridans, and Milroys and Buffers, one
day to be published by the general sub
scription Of our people, that the world may
Judge between US and the spoon thieves.
the furniture thieves, the barn-burners, the
bummers, and the brutes who too often
wore the uniform Of the Federal army
A. NJ K.