The Rutland daily globe. [volume] (Rutland, Vt.) 1873-1877, 1873-12-30
BY TELEGRAPH.
THE vIRGINIUs SURVIVORS.
THE ACCOUNT OF THE CUBAN
BUTCHERY.
The Arrival of the Juniata
NEW York. Dec. 90

A'EN ptsN' btNs ~
The United States war sloop Juniata
with 1902 of the Virginus prisoners, arrived
in this port yesterday afternoon. She left
Santiago de Cuba on the evening Of Thurs
day, Dec 49, under command of Captain
d. L. Brainc. The voyage was exceed
ingly stormy the wind at times blowing II
hurricane The prisoners, unused to
changes of climate, suffered very much
from the cold. There was heavy north
east gale for five successive days
The suffering Of the prisoners during
their confinement in Santiago, ~ (c>rribcl
10y themselves. makes up one Of the worst
instances of brutality on modern record.
They were slinted in food and clothing.
The water was impure, and was given To
them, while their hands were tied behind
them in buckets from which the .horscs
and mules had drank. Their food was q
decoction of rice. in which had been boiled
one calls head in each batch for the l09
prisoners. The iailcrs. not satisfied with
reducing their physical condition to the
lowest cbb by starvation and brutality,
kept them in perpetual mental torture by
threats Of death. Every few hours they
were visited by some Spanish official, who
told them to prepare to die, as they were
to he shot within an hour Then they
were marched through the streets bare
footed. with their hands tied behind
them
Captain Brainc describes this as the re-
finement Of cruelty. He called upon
Governor Moran de Ros and demanded
that this brutality should cease. The Gov
crnor gave his word of honoras Il Spanlrl
that he would treat the prisoners more len
iently. and not subject them to such cruel
~ again, but this vow was broken almost
as soon as made. That very night hcvlsit.
ed the prisoners cell. which was only forty
five feet in breadth by fifty in length. and
told them to prepare for death, rs they
were to be shot the next morning. The
priests passed the greater portion of that
night with them, administering the rites of
their religion Toward daybrcali they
were marched from Santiago seven miles TO
Moro Castle. There they were told that
they had but four hours to live, and were
marched back to Santiago in Il furnishing
condition. This horrible comedy was kept
up until they were huddlel into the flat
that was TO take them to the ,Iuniata At
another time they were all taken to the
chapel in Santiago to say thcil prayers
having been told that they would be shot
Immediately afterward.
oREDULors OF FINAL GOOD FORTUNE.
When the prisoners were put on board
the .Iuniata they did not know that they
were to be kindly dealt with. Rumors had
been set afloat long time previous to their
cmbarking that they would be summary
dealt with as soon as they got on board and
all of them believed that they would be
shot. They could not be made to realize
that they had fallen in good hands. not
withstanding every assertion by the officers
of the Juniata. They were filthy. covered
with vermin, and their clothes were ragged
and sparse The officers of the .Iuniata
told them to take off their old clothes. and
said that new ones would be givcn them.
This they would not do. and under no con-
sidcration could they he persuaded TO pat
with their old clothes. Not until they had
been shown the well filled store rooms did
they discard their rags They then gave
themselves thorough washing, and twu
suits Of new clothes were given to each.
Their discarded rags were thrown over
board.