The true northerner. [volume] (Paw Paw, Mich.) 1855-1920, 1876-03-03

these friends upon the time and attention OF
the Provost Marshall was 30 great, bringing
gifts of dsinties and often Of money, that he
had to set apart two days Of each week as the
only DAYS ON which they wovld be allowed to
bring these things to the prisoners. And on
those days Fort Avenue would be crowded with
carriages containing ladies and gentlemen, Of
ten with liverled footmen and drivers, bringing
baskets of cakes, fruit, clean linen, chewing
and smoking tobacco, pipes, cigars, and often
bottles of VINE and other articles which caused
us fellows on guard TO feel envious-and the
boys who were there will remember with emo
ton of pleasure the occasional sly lunches
secretly coniiscated FROM such OF these baskets
as we're entrusted to their care TO be delivered
TO men inside. We we're often led to think
and remark Oh . sing these rebel officers in
dressing gowns, .lppera, and smoking caps, or
with patent leather top boots, spurs and
plumed hats, putting their havanas, that they
had made up their minds to remain where they
were, and TO let the Confederacy take care of
itself. Scarcely a week passed that large num-
bers did not take the oath Of allegiance, sensi-
bly, concluding that they could not better their
conditions by going southwark. / don't mean
to be understood Al saying that this prison was
paradise, FOR there were many discomfo,ts and
annoyances-some Of them hard to be horne
but noue OF them worse than might be reason
ably expected IN military prison. And when
any prisoner was taken sick he was removed to
tue Fort Hospital, large and costly brick
structure where he was placed in bed right
IN the same ward with our own men and was
made as comfortable a. possible. No distnc
ton was made between any of the patients,
Union man or Confed crate. This, too was
comparatively small prise n, and consequently
free froul ali evils which ouid naturally be in
cdeut to places like Camp Oh ase and Douglas,
and Point Lookout. But deny even at these
PRISONS was there anything like systematic
cruelty practiced on the prisoners ! know
that al the Elmira { y. y Camps, in regard to
the horrors of which there has been so much
written and said at the south, the prisoners
occupied the same barracks with others added.
which were used as a place Of rendezvous for
FEDERAL troops during the early part Of the
war and was myself there as member Of
| the 9th y. Y. Infantry, in the fall and winter
OF 1861, can say with truth, that those bar
racks, with the cook and mess rooms, were as
comfortable as they could be made. The off,
GERS III charge OF this post while 1t was prison
camp, say that the prisoners we're ell furnished
with plentiful supply Of food and water, and
ali who headed it, were supplied with good
clothing at Government expenses They also
had excellent Hospital accommodations and
Medical attendance of the best order. On the
other hand, insist, and know by personal ex-
perience, that IN the Southern prison pens OF
| Libby Castle Thunder, Belle Isle ana salisbury
az well a. at Andersonville-a systemati,
course Of cruelty and nhuman treatment to-
wards the MON prisoners was planned and
carried out by the Confederate Government and
its officers, by which it is evident they intended
/ to take all the lives OF Federal soldiers they
could take, and render the balance unit for
! further service in the army of the Unien
The 9th \, y. Heavy Artillery wac assigned
! to the ID Division-Gibbon 's-of the I'd Army
Corps-Hancock sand was engaged in a fight
at Reams Station, on Weldon railroad south Of
/ Petersburg, on the 2jth Of August, 1864. a
! large nu mber OF prisoners were taken at that
! time by the enemy, myself among the number,
and the few vino were left were paroled on the
I'D day Of February, following. To the best o.
my recoll ection, there were nineteen members
OF or e Company taken at this time and OF
this number ten lived to get home four Of
whom died soon after, leaving sx now living
And OF these not one is IN health-all are Grip
pied, manned, and with constitute ons broken.
Within one hour after the surrender at Ream's
Station, most OF the boys we're stripped Of
everything except barely clothing enough 10
cover their nakedness, and all OF them we're
robbed of more or less. A rebel officer on
horseback rode up behind me and punching me
with his revolver, said, "Take of that gum, ;
meaning my rubber poncho. was on the
point of saying in my simplicity Why, that is
NINE, but concluded immediately that il was
best TO give 1t to him without any words. a.
though fell to comparing their way with that
Of our boys, inside our lines, OF entertaining
strangers. The same officer took my shelter
tent and hat.
These Confederstes went at this robbing
with perfect GOODNESS, and as though it was FOR
the purpose alone that our capture bad been
effected was reminded of stores had read
of Italian brigands. ] was left finally with
only SHIRT aud PAIR of pants, bare-headed and
| bare-footed. received no more clothing IN
til l reached our limos again in the following
March. Hardly any Of the boys Jared better !;
but in the heat Of August and with tie expec-
tatIon OF decent treatment at their hands, IN
til We could be exchanged, we did not feel our
! loss 80 heavily as afterwards, when We we're
. spooning" down together for warmth on the
ground at Salisbury Stockade, in the sleety
rams OF the winter following. Our treatment
while IN the prisons OF Richmond, Libby,
Castle Thunder aud Belle Isle, was the conn.,
terpart o. that of thousands OF others who
have related their experiences there, and will
pass over that line and begin where the most
serious trouble did-at the gates OF Salisbury
Prison.
But ! will mention one or two incidents which
took place while in Libby, Castle Thunder and
enroute for Salisbury. Most Of the ID Corps
had been paid off nearly Blk months wages just
before our capture, and many of the men had
sums of money ranging from 30 to $780, which
they had in some wsy unknown to the winter,