Wilmington journal. [volume] (Wilmington, N.C.) 1844-1895, 1868-09-11

grand scene, and like his setting behind
ben Lomond," deserves to be perpetual
ted in verse and song. W., Jr.
Letter from Hon. Ro. ouId-The Exchange
of Prisoners-Reply to .. A. Meredith.
RICHMOND, Va. Sept. 3, 1868.
To the Editors Of The Enquirer and Eadnaine':
SIR The Dispatch, a few days ago,
styles himself "late Brigadier General and
U. S. Commissioner of Exchange" The
letter was originally published in the But
falo Commercial Advertiser. This gu. S.
Commissioner " is not Brigadier General
Solomon Meredith, of Indiana, as the
Hon. Garrett Davis, of Kentucky, sup
posed, in his remarks in the United States
Senate upon retaliation in January, 1865
but Sullivan A. Meredith, formerly OF
Philadelphia. He is more commonly, and
I will add more aptly, known as Sully
Meredith but like verb of the class in
transitire, he cannot "sully" any one, ex-
cept himself. No man who knows him
we'll would even get angry at anything he
says or writes. He is such an ass.
He was q. s. Commissioner of Exchange
once, and lest for that reason his letter
might impose upon somebody, have de-
termined, Notwithstanding its grossness,
to reply to it. If he had not once occu-
pied that official position, I never would
have noticed his scurrility. Hear him
"Another insuperable obstacle to returning ex-
changes Was in the matter OF paroles, Mr. Ould
claimed as valid. Most, it not all Of these pa
! roles were taken by guerilias, bushwhackers and
detached commands in the West. No possession
was ever had, no delivery was ever made, and no
| rolls were ever furnished On the capture of a
| town by rebel cavalry raj the command re-
manned long enough to take the paroles of IN
| armed citizens there and then decamped leaving
! the paroled men behind and forwarding the pa
roles to Richmond. And the rebels had the ASST
rance to require the United States Government to
| exchange prisoners legitlmately captured in bat
| tie for such paroles as these"
To show how utterly untruthful this Sully
is, will give an extract from an official
letter which [ wrote to him on November
21st, 1868, in relation to these paroles. 1t
is as follows
| 81 will not claim the paroles Of citizens. All
! the paroles which will produce will be those of
Federal soldiers in actual service at the time of
capture. will show the particular locality where
the parties were captured, the command to which
they belonged tho command which captured
them, and the precise date of each transaction
will accompany the presentation with such full
and particular evidence as will enable you to
verify the truth of the by your own records
and the statements of your own officers and SOL
diers."
Now, whether Sully forgot the other day
in Buffalo that he had received such let
/ ter, or purposely falsifed the fact I know
not. It is, perhaps. charitable to infer that
he had forgotten, as that is a habit of his.
recollect one case when he was acting as
United States Commissioner, in which he
| failed to claim certain credits to which he
was entitled, and took occasion to refresh
his memory. If he wishes the particulars.
and asks for them in more polite language
than he uses in his letter, 1 will give them
to him.
Sully is scarcely more accurate in his CT
tation of the other g causes of the susDen-
sion of the cartel" It is utterly untrue
either that made " illegal declarations
of exchange" or that call prisoners pa
rolled by the United States authorities were
Immediately returned to active duty in the
rebel army. It was the practice of the
agents of exchange Oh both sides to declare
exchanges when equivalents were given
either i'll prisoners OF paroles. The fifth
article of the cartel provided that
"Each patty upon the discharge of prisoners
of the other party, is authorized to discharge an
equal number of thee officers and men from
parole furnishing at the same time to the other
party list of those prisoners discharged, and of
their own officers and me- IL relieved from parole
thus enabling each party to relieve from parole
such of their own officers and men as the party
may choose"
Whenever I delivered Federal prisoners
out of hand, or discharged Federal troops
from their paroles, [ had, under this arti-
Gle of the cartel, the right to declare ex-
changes to that extent and did so de-
clare. Never in any one instance did [ go
beyond that [ always promptly notified
the Federal agent of the exchange. Surely
I had the right to offset the Vicksburg pa
roles by those taken by Forrest and Wheel
er in Tennessee The Federal practice and
my own were in accord. Sully knows it
In letter written by me on October I'd,
1868, to him, [ pointed out eleven instances
in which his predecessor, Lieutenant Col
onel Ludlow, had done the same thing, and
one, at least, where Sully had himself made
similar declaration of exchange. In the
same letter / also informed him that I
would only claim such paroles Us were in
accordance with the general orders of the
United States War Department. No one
knows better than Sully that my declara-
tlons OF exchange were limited to cases
where [ had either furnished equivalents in
prisoners or proper paroles.
If, however, he wants 40 Instance when
men under parole were ordered to do duty
without exchange, he will find it in the list
of General Schenck's remarkable military
achievements. That distinguished COM
mander by General Order No. Is, dated
March 8, 1863, required all officers and
men. who had been captured in his de-
partment and released on parole, to return
to service on penalty of being considered
deserters. No equivalents, not even pa
role, had been furnished. If Sully will
come down to a later period, he will find
that the same thing was done with prison
ers who were captured and paroled by Gen
eral Lee and his subordinate officers in the
Gettysburg campaign. Two of the officers
who were ordered to duty refused on the
ground of their paroles, and were court
martialed. Both of these dates were an
terror to that of Chickamauga, as was
Sully's declaration of exchange before men
toned.
He is not more fortunate in his reference
to Mr.. Davis message and negro soldiers.
AS no officers were 'handed over to the
State authorities" the message made no
practical difficulty. Federal prisoners,
white and black, were under the exclusive
control of the Confederate government
during the whole of the war.
Sully is inaccurate again in his state
ment about negro troops. The Confede-