Clearfield Republican. [volume] (Clearfield, Pa.) 1851-1937, 1876-02-02
NEW SERIES--VOL. II, NO. 5,

h. were, alas too frequent and obvio
1t to be mistaken. Smallpox cases we
70 crowded in such n manner that II W
3, q matter Of impossbility for surge,
Y. to treat his patient individually th,
h actually laid so adjacent that the sin
e, pie movement Of one case would eau
Is his neighbor to cry out In an agony
pain. The confuent and malignal
d typo prevailed TO such an extent thi
o the body would frequentlybc found
@ be one continuous scab.
o "The diet and other allowances b
+ the government for the use OF the pri
q oncrs were ample, yet the poor unfo
d tunates were allowed to starve.n
!: Now, sir the Confederate regulation
: authorized ample provision for Federl
= prisoners, the same that was made ft
Y Confederate soldiers, and you chare
s that Mr. Davis is responsible for nc
having those allowances honestly sur
piled. The United States made pre-
. vision for Confederate prisoners, so ia
as rations were concerned, TOR feedin
: those in Federal hands; and yet wha
: says the surgeon? "They were allowe,
to starve."
''But 'whyT is a query which will
J allow your readers TO infer and to draw
conclusions therefrom. Out of th,
number Of prisoners, as before men
toned, over three thousand of then
now lay buried in the cemetery located
near the camp for that purpose
mortality equal to, if not greater than
any prison in the South. AT Ander
sonville, as am well informed by bro
ther officers who endured confinement
there, as well as by the records al
Washington, the mortality was twelve
thousand out Of, say forty thousand
prisoners. Hence it is readily to bs
seen that the range of mortality was
no less at Elmira than at Anderson
Vile"
Mr.. Platt-Will the gentleman allow
me to interrupt him a moment to ask
him where he gets that statement
Mr.. Hill-It is the statement of a
Federal surgeon published in the New
York World
Mr.. Platt-I desire TO say that / live
within thirty-six miles Of Elmirn, and
that those statements are unqualifiedly
false. af
Mr.. Hill-Yes, and suppose if one
rose from the dead the gentleman would
not believe hiu.
Mr. Platt-Does the gentleman say
that those statements are true?
Mr. Hill-Certainly do not say that
they are true, but do say that | be-
lievc the statement OF the surgeon in
charge before that of a politician thirty
six miles away Now will the gentle
men believe testimony from the dead9
The Bible says, "The tree is known by
its fruits" And, after all, what Is
the test Of suffering of these prisoners
North and South2 The test is the re-
suit, Now | call the attention OF gen
tlemen to this fact, that the report of
Mr. Stanton, the Secretary Of War
you will believe him, will you not p
on the 10th of July, ls66--send to the
Library and get it--exhibits the fact
that OF the Federal prisoners in Con-
federate hands during the war, only
22,576 died, while of the Confederate
prisoners in Federal hands 20, ,436 died.
And Surgeon General Barnes reports
in an official report suppose you will
believe him-that in round numbers
the Confederate prisoners in Federal
hands amounted to 100000, while the
Federal prisoners in Confederate hands |
amounted to 270,000, Out OF the go.
900 in Confederate hands $4,000 died,
while of the 100000 Confederates in
Federal hands, over 10000 died. The
ratio is this More than twelve per
cent. Of the Confederates in Federal
hands died, and less than nine per cent.
Of the Federals in Confederate hands
died. What is the logic of these facts
acu1rding to the gentleman from Maine?
scorn to charge murder upon the Of
6cials Of Northern prisons, as the gen.
tleman has done upon Confederate pri-
son officials | labor to demonstrate
that such miserios are inevitable in
prison life, no matter how humane the
lwould scorn, too, TO use
|. |, nemsPaPer ar''c'c, unless ~ were
''g,iou py ohc VINO gave MS own name,
'nu wnose statement II not true, can
~ uisp'o'eu, anu "ouiu oeheve such
one III pre,erence 70 any poiitclan
W.T. shere ~ VINO was tnirty-six miles
way iron, hiin'ra lnat gentleman,
v PromP. 10 con'radlct surgeon,
ngn. pc,nape nsvc smeiieu the small
'oA' pu. nc couio NOT see IL, ana ven
nre 70 say ,hat u nc knew inc small
'oA was 'nere, nc Womb nave taken
'cry gv9u care 10 keep tnirty-six miles
'why' nc IL wonueriui witness, he
no. even equai 10 the mutiialed evi-
,ehcc prougn. ID Yesterday but, sir,
,, aPPears iron ol'cial record that the
,oniene,a.cs came from Eimira, from
'o,' Dciaware ana from ROCK Island, 6
no from otner places, with Their nm {
srs y iroAen on, WIN ,helr toes frozen !
u anu WIN their 'oeth dropped out
But the great question is behind. {
very American, North or South, must I
'mcnt that our country has ever i'm a
cached its civilization by such an OK
ibition Of horrors on any side, and | n
peak OF these things with no degree b
pleasure. God knows if ] could hide b
hem from the view of the world !
'ould gladly do II. But tho question d
|, at last, who was responsible for this o
ate Of thingsY And that is really
be only material question with which Il
'atesmen now should deal. Sir, 1t is b
ell known that, when the war opened, O.
first the authorities OF the United Z
tates determined that they would not u
y rL La !, 90 s.x..A...aI nlx. | u,