Staunton spectator. [volume] (Staunton, Va.) 1849-1896, 1867-10-15
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every respect as good as she was We heartily
assented to the last proposition, and promised
! to send her one OF the strongest scented mascu-
| lines when we got back to Dixie to fill the
place Of her late husband who, she alleged,
had been killed in the first year of the war; A
negro man in the crowd ,energetically. asserted
that he was 'sas good as any id white man
essary to state this sdeclaration Of rights eic
tied three hearty cheers from the prisoners. HS
/ Iwould not have it understood that there
were not manifestations of more gratifying
character on the part Of many of these people.
The countenances Of hundreds bespoke a gen
uine sympathy At the same place lady came
! up to the window where i sat- and said, .ttWhy,
you do not look as though you were all starv-
ing in Dixie You do not look like barba-.
rians !..Y our clothing is not SO gay as that of
our soldiers, but it looks comfortable enough,
and after all not the clothing that makes
the man 7, She then asked if I was a married
man, and the name and address of my wife,
promising to write to her; and though no let
ter from her ever reached my home, I shall al
ways believe she complied with her promise =
At another town two girls, who were standing
on the platform, were Joined by two others. =.
What are you doing here p asked the. latter.
| 'We are looking at the prisoners ~ ssPshaw!
come along,l1 would not look at the mean
q - ;
good as our men, was the spirited response );
| and not unfrequehtly gentlemen would tender
their services, and always returned in good time
with whatever change belonged to us after. ma
| king purchases of food, !, The Major who had
charge Of us from indianapolis to Johnsons
| Island was q kind hearted and courteous gen
tleman. 70 He was an Irishman. regret ihav-
/ ing forgotten his name. Ia n9df baR .H3no1 iiis
| At Johnson's Island we were first subjected
|
and then turned into the fRull PEN" an en-,
closure of five acres, to find quarters as best we
might. i had concealed some forty dollars in
greenbackss given me at eStaunton by Major
VIM. III. Brown and Lieutenant Cherrington,
| Federal officers contributed by themselves and
others on the score of Nlasonry-in the toe of
my boot. This was not discovered, for [ was
sharp enough to leave about three dollars in
my pocket-boo as blind and when asked if
had any money I said s'Yes,,' and handed
| over the book, which satisfied the officer ma
| king the search oT. f51aT sFf ii aI..ser a3i
! Up to about the lst of November following,
there was not much suffering for food, as the
prisoners were allowed to buy provisions of the
sqtler, as well as receive boxes from outside
| friends, SO that those who had money Or friends
were enabled to contribute to the relief Of those
| who had neither. But then an order was pub
lished which not only forbade the sutler to sell
edibles to prisoners, but denied to prisoners the
privilege Of receiving contributions of food from
outside friends, unless the written permit of
the Federal surgeon were previously obtained.
This license was never granted without a strict
examination of, the applicant, and then only in
cases When, In his opinion, change of diet was
indispensably necessary for health. The chief
surgeons name was l1verman, German Jew.
| LII IN his breast there was one particle OF COM
| passion for human suffering, he was pre-emi-
-nently successful in eoncealing and suppressing
| it. No feeling of humanity ever triumphed
over the strict letter OF his Instructions Thad.
Stevens or Benz. E. Butler might travel South
with impunity, but it would be foolhardiness on
the part of Everman to attempt it, unless he
were disguised and even then some outraged
'reb'' would scent him out. Not SO, however,
with DIR. Woodward, the assistant surgeon
| His was feeling heart that ever throbbed
responsive to the sufferings of his fellow men,
He never failed to aid us when he had the abil-
ity to do so.
But, as already i1timated with this order
came sutfering-ohj what suffering! For
months we were strictly confined to prison ra
tlons-no sugar, no Coffee no tea-only bread
and salt beet or salt pork, or salt fish, the lat
ter as poor as poverty and as unnutrIcious as
pine shavings; frequently it was Goldfish, which
few Southern men can eat, even when accom-
panied with other things to conceal the aboml
nable natural taste and the iltolerabie stencil,
but which, without these, is absolutely disgust
ing. But even Of such food as was served to
US, we never received more than one half
enough to sustain healthy existence Occa-
sionally We would get one onion or one potato
each, to last us eight days, or an ounce or so Of
hominy. Many would consume the whole at
one meal others thought it more wise to di.
vide it; but all were hungry, continually hun
cry. 1t IS a terrible thing to be hungry from
day to day, from week to week, from month to
month. 1t is fearful to see three thousand
helpless men undergoing such an ordeal Was
it surprising that men dwindled to half their
usual weight; that their eyes had strangely
wild expression !; that they grew lank, pale,
emaeiated and cadaverous that they reeled as
they walked; that all talked continually of eat
ing of the breakfast, or dinner, or supper they
had enjoyed at times and places that seemed
very long ago, and a great way off that they
slept but to dream of sitting around tables that
groaned with the weight Of wholesome food,
where they ate and ate, yet could not be salts
fed; that with miserly care they picked up
every crumb; that they pounded up old bones
and boiled and reboiled them until they were
dry as husks and white as SNOW; that they
fshed in the hospital swi- barrel for food fit
only for hogs; that they greedily ate rats and
cats that they resorted to all manner of tricks
" CuCdt CHC OuI SCOu uuC VI pei Cudt CHCy
became melancholy, moping, detected and in
different to life, and that many fell an easy
| prey to disease and death. 10
In vain did the Confederate physicians in
the prison draw up and present to Colonel Hl
the commandant, a true and affecting statement
of our suHerlngs, and an earnest remonstrance
against such inhumanity it abated not in the
least the rgour OF our treatment; but as it to
add insult to injury, the Sandusky Register
edited by "a Dutchman with an unpronounceable
name, stated, by way of contrasting our treat
ment with that of Federal prisoners in South
ern PRISONS that $4,000 had been realized
from the sale of rations we had not been able
to consume! The impression sought to be
made was, that ratons far in excess of our me-
cessities had been furnished US. A baser false
hood was never penned. Not one ounce was
carried out of that prison while was there,
period Of over twelve months. If such fund
was outside, it was realized by shortening our
rations. What was done with that money p
1t not unfrequenty happened, however, that
bo4es OF provisions were sent by our friends,
who were ignorant Of the order requiring the
Surgeon permit, and these were coniscated,
| as were scores of overcoats, hundreds Of pairs
| of boots and bottles of fine liquors, notwith-
standing the latter article was so much needed
| by the prisoners, who were continually suffer
ing and dying of diarrhna. Apples, SO neces
sary as an anti-scorbutick, were invariably con-
| fiscated, although hundreds of men were so af-
ficted with scurvy that their gums were con-
stantly bleeding and their teeth drOppipg from