Alexandria gazette. [volume] (Alexandria, D.C.) 1834-1974, 1868-11-24
war prisoners North and South.
The New York World Of Saturday publishes

the following communication
BROOKLYN, N. Y, Nov. l6.
To the Editor of the World:
SIR-l beg herewith (after having carefully
gone through the various documents in my pos
session pertaining TO the matter) to forward
you the following statistics and facts OF the
mortality of the rebel prisoners in the North
ern prisons, more particularly at that of Emira,
New York, where I served as one Of the medi-
cal officers fer many months. | found on COM
mencement of my duties at Elmra about H.,
600 rebel prisoners, fully one.thlrd of whom
were under medical treatment for diseases
principally owing to an improper diet, want
Of clothing, necessary shelter and bad sur
roundngs the diseases were consequently OF
the following nature Scurvy, dlarrhGa,
pneumonia, and the various branches OF typhoid,
all superinduced by the causes, more or less,
aforementioned The winter OF lS64-G5 was
an unusually severe and rigid one, and the
prisoners arriving from the Southern States
during this season were mostly old men and
lads, clothed in attire suitable only to the ge-
NAL climate of the South. need not state to
you that this alone was ample cause Tor an I'M
usual mortality amongst them. The surround
ings we're of the following nature, viz: Mar
row, confined limits but few acres or ground
in extent, and through which slowly lowed
turbid stream OF water, carrying along with IL
all the excrementa filth and debris OF the camp;
this stream of water, horrible to relate. was
the only source Of supply, for an extended pc
Rod. that the prisoners could possibly use for
the purpose of addition, and to Stake thirst
from day to day; the tents and other shelter
allotted to the camp at Elmira were INSULT
Gent, and crowded to the utmost extent; hence,
smallpox and other skin diseases ragged
throughout the camp Here l may note that,
owing to a general order from the Government
to vaccinate the prisoners, my opportunities
were ample to observe the effects OF spurious
and diseased matter, and there is no doubt In
my mind but that syphilis was engratted IN
many instances ugly and horrible ulcers and
eruptioDs of n characteristic nature were, alas
too frequent and obvious to be mistaken
SMALLPOX cases were crowded in such a man
ner that it was matter of impossibiity for
the surgeon to treat his patient individually ;
they actually laid so adjacent that the simple
movement Of one OF them would cause his
neighbor to cry out IN agony OF PAIN. The
continent and malignant type prevailed TO such
an extent and OF such nature that the body
would frequently be found one continuous scab.
The diet and other allowances by Government
for the use of the prisoners were ample, yet
the poor unfortunates were allowed to starVe !;
readers to infer, and to draw conclusions there
from Out of the number of prisoners, as be-
fore mentioned, over three thousand OF them
now lay buried in the cemetery located near
the camp for that purpose, q mortality equal,
if not greater, than that Of any prison IN the
South At AndersonVlle as | am well III
formed by brother officers who endured conine-
ment there, as well as by the records at Wash
ingtnn, the mortality was twelve thousand out
of say about forty thousand prisoners, Hence
it is readily to be seen that the range OF NOR
tality was no less at Eimira than at Anderson
vile.
At Anders0nville there was actually nothing
TO feed or cothc the prisoners with, their own
soldiers faring but little better than their prs-
oners; this, together with torrid sun and an
impossibility OF exchange, was abundant cause
Tor their mortality. With our prisoners at
Emira no such necessity should honestly have
existed, as our Government had actually, as
| have stated most bounuiluIly made provision
for the wants of all detained, both Of officers
ana men, Soldiers who have been prisoners at
Andersonyie, and have done duty at Ell
mira, confirm this statement, and which is in
no wise in one particular exaggerated; also,
the same may be told Of other prisons managed
in . similarly terrible manner. allude to
Sandusky, Fort Delaware and others; | do
not say that all prisoners at the North suffered
and endured the terrors and the cupldity
OF venal sub officials; on the contrary, ut the
camps in the harbor Of New York. and at
Point Lookout, and at other camps where my
official duties from time to time have called
me- the prisoners in all respects have Jared as
our Government intended and designed they
should Throughout Texas, where food and
the necessaries of life were plentiful, found
our own soldiers faring well, and to a certain
extent contentcd, so far, at least, as prisoners
Of war could reasonably expect to be.
Our Government allowed the prisoners OF war
the following rations wide Regulations, PIP.
224, Articles | 1870, l,l9l J II OF. of pork or
bacon or TO- or salt of fresh beef l ID. or.
Of soft bread or -four, or ID. Of corn meal
and to every one hundred ratons Is lbs. Of
beans or peas and 10 lbs. of rice or hominy,
10 lbs. OF green coffee or lbs. OF roasted do,
or ID. or. tea, 10 lbs. Of sugar, quarts OF
vinegar, 80 lbs, Of potatoes, and if fresh pota-
toes could not be obtained, canned vegetables
we're allowed. Page l07, Article 746, U. s.
Army Observation-Disclosures Of war will re-
ceiye for subsistence one ration each without
regard to rank, their private property will be
duly respected, and each shall be treated with
regard to his rank, and the wounded are to be
treated with the same care as the wounded OF
our army. How faithfully these regulations
were carried out at Elmira, is shown by the
following statement of facts The sick in hos
pita were cprtailed in every respect (frcsh We
getables and other anti-scorbutlcs were dropp-
ed from the list,) the food scant, crude and I'M
fit; medicines SO badly dispensed that it was
farce for the medical man to prescribe. At
large in the camp the prisoner Jared still
worse slice of bread and salt meat was
L.. l.. ol-En hotaE had
concocted cup of soup, so-called, and slice OF
miserable bread was all he could obtain tor his
evening meal and hundreds of sick who could
in no wise obtain medical aid died.. 'unknelled,
uncoffined and unknown" [ have in no wise
drawn on imagination, and the facts as stated
can be attested by the staff Of medical officers
who laborcd at the Elmira prison for the rebel
soldiers.
ExMEDICAL OFFICER u. S. ARMY.
PERSoNAL.-The Washington correspond
emf of the Baltimore Gazette saws.